As a Georgia woman, wife, and mother, I’m incensed by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney’s ruling to strike down the LIFE Act in favor of more liberal abortion regulations in our state. Not only is McBurney’s order an example of a judge legislating his agenda from the bench, but his impeccable timing is also suspect.
Major national headlines coming out of Georgia consume our news media: the devastation of Hurricane Helene, former President Donald Trump’s visit to our state, and the fire at the chemical plant in Conyers, for example. While we’re distracted with “more pressing” news stories, McBurney stealthily drops his meticulously crafted verdict, hoping it will get swallowed up in the name of bigger news.
No doubt this ruling will be appealed, and the Georgia Supreme Court will most likely overturn it. But in the meantime, what about the innocent babies who will lose their lives to abortion at up to 22 weeks in Georgia?
Babies — fellow Georgians like me!
When I was 21 years old, I found out I was part of a “club” that no one ever chooses to be a part of. The members of this “club” have fought for our lives and have miraculously survived! But every day as a member of this “club” is gut-wrenching in our current political climate. In a world where we’re told that we “don’t exist” or that we’re “making up” our stories for political gain, our voices are silenced.
I’m an abortion survivor. That title dropped into my bedroom like a lead balloon on a sweltering summer day in Georgia in 2004. My mom had asked to talk with me, and she proceeded to share a secret she had been keeping from me for 21 years.
My mom had attempted to abort me, and I survived! An 18-year-old college student at the time, she had gone to six abortion appointments in three different states, desperate to eliminate “the problem” of an unplanned pregnancy. However, her plan was interrupted time and time again; in fact, God did fifteen miracles along the way to save my life!
Fast forward to today, and that familiar feeling of lead-like heaviness in the room resurfaced once again when I heard about McBurney’s decision. You see, at the last abortion clinic that my mom went to before her second-trimester dilation and evacuation abortion procedure, an ultrasound determined that she was 21.6 weeks pregnant. My tiny body was measuring the same size as the cutoff for abortions that are now legal here in Georgia!
Unfortunately, I know the trauma of abortion firsthand. I’ve lived it as I’ve unraveled the tangled web of feeling unwanted in my family. I’ve watched my mom unpack decades of guilt, shame, and regret that she metaphorically “shoved in a box” after my premature birth.
Abortion HURTS women. That truth is personal for me and my family.
McBurney’s ruling is about so much more than a political agenda; it’s about people! There are innocent lives like mine hanging in the balance. There are women like my mom and men like my dad who are being lied to about the trauma of abortion.
If there’s one thing I’ve discovered after learning my story, it’s that our voices and stories are the bane of the abortion industry. Abortion survivors like me are a living, breathing reminder that a “medical procedure” (which is the only one that purposely intends to END the life of a human being, by the way) failed.
However, there is hope! In 2020, I connected with a national organization called The Abortion Survivors Network. It’s the only organization of its kind, and its goal is to provide hope and healing for abortion survivors around the world. We’ve connected with approximately 800 abortion survivors so far. Not only have I met some amazing, lifelong friends, but I’ve watched women like my mom and babies like me who have found hope and healing begin to share their stories and speak the truth!
There is power in sharing our stories. There is power in speaking the truth. There is power in valuing every person, every life, and every human being.
Abortion survivors are people, too. Our faces represent the most innocent and vulnerable among us. We must stand united in the fight and refuse to be silenced.
I’m overwhelmed with gratitude when I think about the 42 years I have been blessed with on this earth. I’m thankful for my life, my husband, my three children, and the beautiful life we live together.
But what about other babies like me? I feel a duty, a sense of responsibility, and a moral obligation, to speak up! Innocent babies’ lives, future Georgians, and generations hang in the balance.
I will not let these babies’ lives get lost in the news cycle. I will not stand idly by. Will you?
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