Arkansas Ranked ‘Most Pro-Life State’ as it Pushes to End Abortion

This week Arkansas was named the “most pro-life state” in the country by Americans United for Life (AUL), one of the premier national organizations in the country whose mission is to protect preborn life.

In announcing the state rankings at a press conference in Little Rock, Arkansas recently, AUL President and CEO Catherine Glenn Foster said, “Every year the team at Americans United for Life ranks all 50 states on how welcoming and protective they are to all human life. For 2021, I couldn’t be more proud to announce that Americans United for Life has ranked the great state of Arkansas as the most pro-life state in our union!

“2020 saw a real race to the top as communities across the country passed laws that save the lives of preborn children and protect the health of women. Arkansas is number one because of the truly impressive example that is being set in Little Rock. 

“In 2019, Arkansas passed a whopping 10 pro-life laws and several of these were enjoined. But this summer, after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June Medical Services, these laws were allowed to go into effect.

“The right to life demands respect and protection, from the very beginning of life when we can only see the dark of our mother’s womb, till the end of our life when we may rely the most on those around us for care and support, from beginning to end, no matter what. Arkansas understands that reality. 

“Congratulations to Arkansas and every state which made a difference this year in the fight for life.”

One of the groups in Arkansas that has been working tirelessly for over 30 years to push for pro-life legislation and help promote a culture of life within the state is Family Council, a Focus on the Family-affiliated organization. Its president, Jerry Cox, celebrated the news of his state’s first place ranking.

“This is incredible news. Arkansans should be proud to live in a state that has the best laws in the nation when it comes to protecting innocent human life. That’s something to be proud of,” Cox said in a press release.

Cox also pointed out that the state didn’t achieve its pro-life success suddenly, nor is any one group responsible for it.

“Becoming the most pro-life state in America didn’t happen overnight,” he said. “This was the result of decades of hard work. Arkansas Right to Life has been fighting abortion for over forty years, and Family Council has been at it for more than thirty years. Arkansas’ General Assembly has passed more than thirty good, pro-life bills since 2011. Governor Hutchinson has signed into law every pro-life bill that came across his desk.  Attorney General Rutledge has defended these good laws in court. Ministers, churches, everyday Arkansans, and many others all have worked very hard to make Arkansas a pro-life state.”

Neither Family Council nor the state legislature are planning to rest on their laurels, however. Family Council tells The Daily Citizen that its priority beginning in the new year is to push for passage of S.B. 6, The Unborn Child Protection Act.

The bill prohibits all abortion except to save the life of the mother in a medical emergency. As such, it directly challenges the legitimacy of Roe v. Wade, which judicially recognized the right to abortion as constitutionally protected.

The bill makes no bones about its purpose. It even includes a plea to the U.S. Supreme Court:

“The State of Arkansas urgently pleads with the United States Supreme Court to do the right thing, as they did in one of their greatest cases, Brown v. Board of Education, which overturned a fifty-eight year-old precedent of the United States, and reverse, cancel, overturn, and annul Roe v. Wade, Doe v. Bolton, and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.”

We’ll keep you up to date on any news of S.B. 6 as it makes its way through the Arkansas legislature. But congratulations to everyone in the state, including our friends at Family Council, for doing such an outstanding job protecting life!

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