Activists want to expand abortion in the state through referendum — and they’re doing anything they can to get their way, including deceiving voters.
Activists want to expand abortion in the state through referendum -- and they’re doing anything they can to get their way, including deceiving voters.
I magine surviving a saline-induced, late-term abortion — not once, or twice, but three times. This is the story of Robin Sertell, a brave survivor who was born alive after three failed attempts to end her life. Aborting babies in the second and third trimester is an incredibly gruesome and tedious procedure. It usually lasts three days and involves taking a child out of the mother’s womb, piece by piece.
Aborting babies right before birth will be legal in South Dakota if a constitutional amendment, “Amendment G,” passes this November. Amendment G allows abortion until birth, removes health and safety measures for women, and cuts parents out of the equation if their daughter is being forced or coerced into an abortion.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, many conservative states like my home state of South Dakota activated trigger laws on abortion. These laws were passed while Roe was still operative and were designed to be implemented the moment Roe v. Wade was overturned. They typically outlawed abortion unless the doctor believed it was needed to save the life of the mother. Since then, the abortion lobby has aggressively centered its efforts around gathering petition signatures and putting abortion measures on the ballot in states like South Dakota, among many others.
Amendment G is radical. Most Americans agree, according to a Harvard-Harris national poll, which reports that seven in ten Americans oppose abortion after 15 weeks. That is, 73 percent of American voters would support a 15-week “limit” on abortions. Here in South Dakota, the proposed amendment has not received support from the South Dakota Medical Association, Planned Parenthood, or the ACLU.
Sensible voters don’t want abortion legalized up to birth in South Dakota. Under Amendment G, an abortion can happen anytime the abortion doctor believes it’s needed “to preserve the life or health of the pregnant mother.” Because the word “health” is not defined, it automatically includes everything related to the mother’s health. This means that added stress, a minor increase in blood pressure, mental anxiety, or other conditions would be legally used to justify a late-term abortion.
When I was pregnant with my son, I had a condition called Hyperemesis Gravidarum, which means I had severe nausea and vomiting all throughout my pregnancy. Under Amendment G, an abortion doctor could have easily used this stress on my body to justify an abortion. There were “risks” to my pregnancy, but nothing that would ever justify killing a child — especially in the final months before birth.
On top of this gruesome reality, the measure repeals all health and safety standards for the mother and baby in the first trimester. The language strictly says we “may not” implement any health or safety standards that relate to the “effectuation” of an abortion. To make matters worse, under Amendment G, an abortion doesn’t have to be performed by a licensed doctor in a safe or clean setting.
Life Defense Fund (LDF), a South Dakota pro-life ballot-question committee, has devoted its time, energy, and resources to ensure these kinds of barbaric abortion practices that endanger the lives of mothers and children don’t see the light of day. But we face an uphill battle, like Ohio and Kansas did. The abortion lobby is pouring in millions of out-of-state dollars to spread falsehoods and lies to cement its radical abortion agenda.
Dakotans for Health, the pro-Amendment G group that relies on paid petition circulators, claims to be standing up for the “will of the people” and for “restoring Roe v. Wade.” These two claims are blatantly false. South Dakotans have already spoken loud and clear when they voted for legislators who passed a trigger law protecting women and children from reckless amendments like this. Moreover, this abortion amendment goes much further than restoring Roe v. Wade. Before Roe v. Wade was overturned, South Dakota law allowed abortions up to 22 weeks. After that, it was only legal in cases of a medical emergency.
The false campaign claims are not the first time Dakotans for Health members have lied to the public. In fact, they used unlawful tactics to get Amendment G on the ballot in the first place. Placing an amendment on the ballot in South Dakota requires roughly 35,000 valid signatures. However, LDF has over 100 hours of video capturing pro-choice petition circulators, much of which showed them breaking South Dakota law. We have proof of their unlawful activities when they left petitions unattended, withheld circulator handouts, and had people sign more than once. All of these are clear violations of South Dakota election law. On top of this, petition circulators also engaged in fraudulent activities. Some circulators engaged in a bait-and-switch by inviting citizens to sign a separate petition to repeal the sales tax on food, but then the circulator handed them the abortion-amendment petition instead. Other petition circulators even claimed it’s a pro-life measure.
A South Dakota pastor said that he happily signed the abortion petition because he was told it was a “pro-life” initiative. Thankfully someone told him the truth just in time for him to go back and scratch his name off.
With Dakotans for Health breaking countless laws, the South Dakota attorney general publicly reprimanded the group last fall after seeing mounds of video and photo evidence. Much more proof of wrongdoing has surfaced since.
Due to the unlawful, dirty tactics of the abortion lobby, LDF sued Dakotans for Health, challenging their signatures. Given Dakotans for Health’s illegal actions, abortion-up-to-birth should not be on the ballot for a vote. The second-circuit court judge dismissed LDF’s case based on an old statute. But the South Dakota supreme court recently ruled in LDF’s favor, sending the case back to the lower court, where we will finally present our evidence to the judge. If LDF ultimately wins this case, the amendment will be disqualified and not placed on the ballot. Though we’re hopeful this amendment can be removed from the ballot this election, pro-life South Dakotans like me are fighting against out-of-state money, slimy tactics, and a mountain of lies being spread across our state.
As Americans, we have not only the responsibility, but also the duty to protect life and speak truth. We know that our Creator has endowed us with the rights of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” We must protect the first to enjoy the rest.
The abortion lobby has mastered unlawful activities and smear tactics to win their abortion fights. But we refuse to stoop so low. Community values run strong in South Dakota, and we will take the high road as we fight against late-term abortion.
The Life Defense Fund and pro-life South Dakotans will charge ahead in our efforts to stop this radical abortion amendment and protect our state’s most vulnerable little humans.