WASHINGTON, D.C., July 27, 2021—The Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission filed an amicus brief in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization today, requesting the U.S. Supreme Court overturn the Roe v. Wade (1973) and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992) decisions that have prevented states from prohibiting abortion.
“For too long, the Roe and Casey decisions have allowed our nation to turn a blind eye to the plight of those who have no voice,” said Chelsea Patterson Sobolik, ERLC’s acting director of public policy. “Our brief asks the Court to overturn those two cases and set a new precedent that respects every life. With each passing day, more and more people recognize preborn lives are worthy of protection. The Dobbs case provides another chance for the Court to come to that same conclusion and affirm the fundamental right to life.”
The ERLC joined with other pro-life organizations on the brief, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Association of Evangelicals and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. The case represents a significant opportunity for the pro-life movement as hundreds of proposed state laws protecting the unborn could potentially take effect.
“Government has many responsibilities. Chief among them is protecting innocent life,” said Brent Leatherwood, ERLC chief of staff. “How much more important is that responsibility when it comes to protecting preborn lives that cannot speak for themselves? Christians have long pleaded the case for America to recognize the inherent dignity of our most vulnerable neighbors. This case gives us another opportunity to do so. Until that happens, our nation will not be able to fully achieve that lofty goal of being a land that preserves life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for every individual.”
The law at the center of the case is an effort by Mississippi to regulate abortion. In taking up the case, the Court agreed to review a Mississippi law that would replace the “viability standard” with a limit on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. More information about the case is available here.
A new study finds that 47 out of 50 European nations limit elective abortion prior to fifteen weeks. The United States is one of only a handful of nations that allow for abortion after twenty weeks.
