Here’s the question we asked our readers:
“Would you vote in support of a “personhood amendment” similar to the one that recently failed in Mississippi?”
Here’s how UFI readers responded:
71 percent Yes
24 Percent No
5 Percent Undecided
The personhood amendment movement is somewhat controversial within the pro-life/pro-family community. Most in the pro-life community can rally around the understanding that life begins at conception, but for many the personhood amendments are an issue of strategy. Is the timing right to push for an amendment such as this? Has the culture moved toward a pro-life position to the degree that the type of legislation can be passed or is it counterproductive and even dangerous to the pro-life movement. For example, the pro-abortion folks are certainly glorying in the loss of the Mississippi Amendment and insisting that the pro-life movement is losing its momentum now.
There is no question that if an amendment such as this were to pass it would be challenged in court and could eventually end up before the U.S. Supreme Court. If that were to occur before the court had the right composition of pro-life minded judges, the results could be devastating – a ruling against the personhood amendment that would set the pro-life movement back for generations to come.
Is it better to take a slower, more incremental approach to laws and with that effort soften hearts and change the culture to eventually accept an overturn of Roe v. Wade? Those pre-conditions are probably necessary to allow a sympathetic U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade anyway.
All in, United Families International is in the camp that believes the slower, more incremental approach is a better strategy, but we certainly understand and sympathize with the pro-personhood amendment position as well.