Right to Life of Michigan (RLM) and Right to Life of Michigan Political Action Committee (RLM-PAC) are composed of people whose passionate belief, held in common, is that human life is a vital force which has value and dignity from conception to natural death.
We see life as deserving the protection of our Constitution and all our laws. We deem all human life of such great importance that we sacrifice willingly to ensure that protection for the unborn is once again upheld in our Constitution through enactment of a Human Life Amendment.
Aside from our great ideal held in common—protecting the unborn, those with disabilities, the elderly, and the frail—we are a divergent people from widely varied backgrounds with varied viewpoints: conservative, moderate and liberal.
Political action is the mechanism by which we are able to influence the laws and policies of our towns, counties, state, and nation. In our governmental system voters not only select the legislators who write the law; they also select the judges who interpret the law, and the officers who are to uphold it. Therefore, political action is a necessary activity for all of us who wish to see human life protected in our nation.
We often have a built-in cultural mechanism when deciding for whom to vote. However, a single issue often becomes the determining factor as we cast our ballots. Since our country began, the issues that move us have been different and varied. The issue of discrimination is a case in point. The “Dred Scott” Supreme Court decision in 1857, denying personhood to black Americans and thus perpetuating slavery, set in motion years of struggle. The commitment to abolishing slavery and ongoing discrimination has significantly influenced elections, successfully led to the abolition of slavery, and continues to help us work toward a more equal society.
This single issue influenced elections, abolished slavery and slowly changed the way we relate to one another.
Our forefathers knew that when people became stirred enough to answer a need or right a wrong, they must have recourse to those who govern them through laws and policies.
There are nearly one million abortions a year in the United States. Each time an abortion occurs a woman is victimized, her baby destroyed, and the abortionist made richer. This violent solution to an untimely pregnancy is not just a “termination of pregnancy” but the killing of an innocent child.
Abortion, as a single issue, is the most important issue facing America. The right to life for all members of our human family is the most important right guaranteed by our founding fathers. In all instances where rights are mentioned jointly, the basic rights of all Americans are listed in this order: Life, Liberty, and Property. We have always held that one person’s right to property never exceeds another’s right to liberty; and that one person’s right to liberty never exceeds another’s right to life. Some give other moral or social issues equal importance; however, none of these other issues allow for the intentional killing of another innocent person.
Unlike the born, the unborn have been denied all legal human rights including legal protection. We must work out of the conviction that the unborn are of the same intrinsic value as the born. This applies as well to the vulnerable human beings targeted by euthanasia and assisted suicide.
As for the right to privacy, the issue is not whether there is such a thing; but how far it extends. It must be remembered that the word “privacy” is not found in the Constitution! It is a right which the Supreme Court found in what it called a “penumbra,” or shadow, of the Constitution. Abortion proponents admitted the limitations of this right after the reversal of Roe v. Wade and now use the terminology of, “right to reproductive freedom.” Even though this right exists in Michigan’s Constitution, for now, the right to liberty should never exceed another’s right to life.
As concerned citizens evaluate and elect candidates on their willingness to protect human life, presidents and legislators are elected who support prolife legislation, judges are elected or appointed who will restore protection through the courts and the end to abortion on demand becomes reality.
Therefore, a candidate’s pro-abortion stand becomes a disqualifying issue as voter after voter awakens to the terrible injustices perpetrated by abortion in our land today. If the civil rights of women and the unborn throughout the nine months of pregnancy are to be restored, then this single issue and our obligation to vote for candidates who hold the right to life inviolate becomes as important as democracy itself. Without life all rights have no meaning.
As Judge John Noonan said, “Once or twice in a century an issue arises…so far-reaching in its consequences, and so deep in its foundations, that it calls every person to take a stand.”
Abortion is one of those issues.
The democratic process is enhanced each time we vote prolife. Our vote is completely devoid of self-interest or economic gain. As prolife voters, we are called to a single issue of such magnitude that we cannot stand idle. We must speak with one voice for women and the unborn. We must vote prolife!