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On June 24, one year had passed since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, a decision that has likely saved thousands of lives.

The controversial Roe landmark decision in 1973 ruled that abortion is a constitutional right, leading to decades of debate in the United States and beyond over the legality and morality of abortion. Roe v Wade was finally struck down on June 24, 2022 in the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, on the basis that the substantive right to abortion is not “deeply rooted in this nation’s history or tradition”.

The Dobbs decision returned power to individual states to legislate on abortion, but it also led to the enactment of “trigger laws” in a number of states that would automatically ban abortion if Roe v Wade was overturned.

On the anniversary of a joyous day in the pro-life movement, we remember the decision that debunked a long-believed myth – that elective abortion is protected in the name of liberty in the American constitution. And, more importantly, we remember a decision that upholds the unalienable right to life and has potentially saved numerous innocent lives from lethal injection and outright infanticide.

Abortion Laws in the United States

So, here we are, one year later – what does the abortion situation in the United States look like in 2023?

Abortion is still legal in 24 states: Alaska, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington. In many of these states, the state supreme court recognises abortion to be a fundamental right and protects those who want to cross border lines to get or provide an abortion.

An abortion ban is blocked by courts in Indiana, Iowa, Montana, Ohio, South Carolina, and Wyoming, where it is legal until 20 or 20-plus weeks of pregnancy.

Abortion is banned in 20 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. In some of these states, there are no exceptions for rape or incest, but there are allowances to save the mother’s life in the case of a medical emergency. Abortion is still legal in some states at certain stages of pregnancy.

The Future of the Pro-Life Movement

But if the pro-life movement were to make bigger waves legally to abolish abortion from the face of the earth, it starts with changing minds through strong leadership, education and marketing – particularly in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election. It starts with making abortion unthinkable.

Lila Rose, founder and president of pro-life organisation Live Action, told Fox News that the movement needs “bold and uncompromising leadership on life” and that Republican candidates should be “willing to call abortion what it is”.

“[We need] leaders that are visionaries, leaders that speak the truth even when it’s unpopular. And the truth is, if you’re human life in the womb, you deserve legal protection and you should be protected from homicide,” Rose said.

She said the movement has to “invest more in education and marketing”, noting some estimates have found that one pro-life dollar spent on marketing is equivalent to 40 pro-abortion dollars.

“The pro-abortion side is all marketing – they use lies and they use misinformation.”

And while Rose understands that hearts and minds cannot be changed overnight, “by the quiet, everyday work of reaching people, teaching people, educating, we can make a cultural change.”

Kellyanne Conway, who was senior counsellor and campaign manager for former president Donald Trump, reminds us ultimately of what the pro-life cause is all about.

“Pro-life is not a matter of winning, so much as saving and making sure we are consistent throughout their entire life,” Conway said in a recent press call.

There is still much work to be done in the fight for life, but on this first anniversary of Dobbs, we can celebrate and give thanks and glory to God for this monumental step towards a culture of life – towards a society where all people and nations will view life as a sacred, God-given gift, and as an indispensable right upon which all other human rights are founded.

We can live in the hope that society will soon believe that every human life – born and unborn – is precious, cherished, and fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God the Creator.

And in time – by the grace of God and through our constant prayers – a massive cultural shift will occur and the myriad of pro-death, anti-woman abortion laws across the United States, Australia, and the whole world will be rolled back for good.

We are the pro-life generation.

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Photo by Yan Krukau.