JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Pro-life supporters across the country marched Friday, a day before the 49th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision in the case of Roe v. Wade.
The March for Life has been held every year since the ruling, but there’s reason to believe this could be the last time.
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He said he’s optimistic this could be the last year they’ll march under the law of Roe v. Wade.
Andrew Shirvell, Executive Director of the Florida Voice for the Unborn, was among the protesters circling the federal courthouse downtown Jacksonville Friday.
“Well, we are very hopeful that this is the last time that we’re going to be marching before Roe v. Wade is finally overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. It’s frankly long overdue,” Shirvell said.
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The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on the constitutionality of Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban some time this summer.
Some like Shirvell believe that ruling will go as far as reversing any constitutional right to abortion in the U.S., which would then allow states to implement abortion restrictions unabated.
Ahead of that decision, Florida lawmakers have already proposed an identical bill here in the Sunshine State.
“We will be saving approximately, nearly 5,000 babies a year with this bill being in place and again there is no prohibition on abortion in this bill, there’s a prohibition on how long you can obtain an abortion,” said the bill’s sponsor State Representative Erin Grall in a Wednesday committee hearing.
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The bill has been approved by one House committee so far.
That 12-6 vote came to the dismay of Orlando Democratic State Representative Anna Eskamani, who, as a former Planned Parenthood official, is one of the most outspoken defenders of abortion rights in the Legislature.
“It sends a message to Floridians across the state that we don’t care about your freedom. We don’t care about private medical decisions about your pregnancy. That we want to insert government between you and your doctor. So it’s incredibly disappointing,” Eskamani said.
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But for those like Shirvell who marched in the Bold City, Washington D.C. and other cities across the country, a 15-week ban doesn’t go far enough.
“What we ultimately would like to see is that unborn babies here in Florida are protected from the moment of conception. That means a complete and utter abortion ban,” Shirvell said.
If the 15-week abortion ban is passed, doctors in Florida that help facilitate an abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy could face five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
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The only exceptions in the bill where an abortion could be carried out after 15 weeks are in situations where a mother could be seriously injured or killed by carrying the pregnancy to term and if the fetus is non-viable.
There are no exceptions for cases of rape and incest.
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