British Section of the World Federation of Doctors Who Respect Human Life

Partial-birth abortion ban

“The Supreme Court ruled for the first time that governments can ban a particular abortion procedure, in a decision on Wednesday that emphasised the value of foetal life over a woman’s right to end a pregnancy.” (USA Today, 18 Apr 07).

“The 5-4 decision, upholding Congress’ ban on a method critics call ‘partial birth’ abortion made plain how a single change in a justice can change the law of the land. The ruling marks the first time the court upheld a law that did not have an exception for a mother’s health. Justice Anthony Kennedy, who wrote for the majority, said government may “use its regulatory authority to show the profound respect for the life within the woman.”

The New York Times on 22 May 07 reported “All sides agree that the debate reached a new level of significance when Justice Anthony M. Kennedy . . . approvingly cited a friend-of-the-court brief filed by the Justice Foundation.

“The Foundation, a non-profit public interest litigation firm that has handled an array of conservative cases, has increasingly focused on abortion through its project called Operation Outcry. Allan E. Parker Jr., president of the foundation, said they began hearing from women in the late 1990’s who considered themselves victims and wanted to tell their stories. ‘Operation Outcry, which grew to include a web site, a national hotline and chapters around the country, eventually collected statements from more than 2,000 women, officials said. In its friends of the court brief, the group submitted statements from 180 of these women. . .” They were supported by Silent No More, another women’s campaigning group. “‘Thirty-three years of real-life experiences,’ the Foundation said. ‘attest that abortion hurts women and endangers their physical, emotional and psychological health.’ ”

“ ‘While we find no reliable data to measure the phenomenon, it seems unexceptionable to conclude some women come to regret their choice to abort the infant life they once created and sustained’, Justice Kennedy wrote, alluding to the brief. ‘Severe depression and loss of esteem can follow.’ ”