As We Await a Ruling on Dobbs, the Pro-Life Movement Has Plenty to Do

Wednesday’s oral arguments before the Supreme Court in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization were encouraging for the pro-life movement. The arguments sounded like they may lead to a ruling in favor of life, but that doesn’t mean that the pro-life movement doesn’t have its hand full.

I had the privilege of speaking with Joshua Edmonds, the executive director of the Georgia Life Alliance (GLA). GLA is the largest pro-life group in Georgia, as well as the state affiliate to National Right to Life since 2014. They’re the leading pro-life group in the state in terms of their work in engaging churches, civic groups, and university students and lobbying at the State Capitol.

GLA was instrumental in helping pass Georgia’s fetal heartbeat bill along with foster and adoption reform and disability legislation in the state. They certify candidates who are pro-life so that Georgia voters can vet and choose the candidates who support a culture of life.

Coming into Wednesday’s oral arguments, Joshua said that he had a good idea of what to expect from the Court.

“We’ve been watching the state of the judicial system for three years since we began working on Georgia’s heartbeat bill,” he said. “I was expecting the dialogue to steer toward some consensus or common sense understanding of what to do with this case.”

He believes that the Court is leaning toward not fully repealing Roe but developing a new definition that allows states to pass viability-based restrictions on abortion.

I asked Joshua if anything surprised him or came across as revelatory in the arguments, and he remarked that “the Justices are talented at guiding the discussion with attorneys and each other to get them to the point they’re trying to make.”

He brought up two instances in particular that stood out. The first was when Justice Samuel Alito was engaging one of the pro-abortion attorneys on whether the states have the ability to protect babies in the womb from a mother who is doing drugs. When the attorney answered in the affirmative, Joshua believes that she cemented the arguments made by the pro-life movement that a baby in the womb is worth protecting.

The second instance centered on the discussion of stare decisis — the adherence to precedent — when one of the pro-abortion attorneys argued that the Court didn’t overturn previous cases involving racism and segregation because they were wrong but because of public opinion. Joshua says that such an argument is disingenuous and exposes the weakness of the argument in favor of abortion rights.

We also talked about how the attorneys arguing in favor of abortion drain the notion of pregnancy of emotion.

“In order to be successful, the abortion lobby has to be clinical,” Joshua noted. “Parents recognize the emotion, joy, depth, and complexities of pregnancy, and abortion advocates have to detach all of that to get people to believe the falsehood that an abortion is safer than a pregnancy.”

There’s also some potential for pro-life advocates to find themselves disappointed even with a positive outcome when the Court announces its ruling next summer.

“There’s a temptation among conservatives to be disappointed by questions from Kavanaugh, Gorsuch, and Barrett, but for the Court to reach a decision based on states’ rights, there has to be some neutral ground that they tread,” Joshua said.

“Conservatives may be expecting a loss if Roe and Casey aren’t overturned,” he continued. “But this case has to be a stepping stone that allows states the right to enact laws that restrict abortion pre-viability. When we can change the argument beyond states’ rights to personhood, we can present the fundamental question of whether abortion can even be acceptable. It’s a stepping stone that could allow the Georgia heartbeat bill to be upheld. The next two cases to come before the Court will be Georgia and Texas.”

We have a long wait until we hear a ruling on Dobbs, so I asked Joshua what the pro-life movement is doing in the meantime.

He brought up the fact that in Texas when their abortion restrictions went into law, frontline stakeholders weren’t expecting the law to go into effect, so they weren’t prepared. Women, children, and families had needs that no one was able to provide for adequately.

In Georgia, where Joshua and I both live, the pro-life movement needs to be prepared for the heartbeat law to go into effect.

“We need to prepare to serve communities so that we don’t wear the charge that we’re just anti-abortion but prove that we’re pro-life beyond birth,” he said.

GLA has been involved in passing laws that prevent pregnant inmates from being shackled, along with paid parental leave that includes foster and adoptive parents. The organization has been involved in legislation like Gracie’s Law, which bans organ transplant discrimination against anyone with a disability, and Simon’s Law, which prevents do-not-resuscitate orders without the permission of a parent or guardian.

Next up for GLA is Betsy’s Law, which seeks to protect homeless pregnant women, and the 2022 governor’s race.

“With a Kemp vs. Abrams rematch, there’s a lot of infighting among Republicans and a lot of angry conservatives, but people need to keep their eyes on the prize,” Joshua declared. “If Georgia loses one chamber, the attorney general, or the governor to the Democrats, the state could repeal the heartbeat bill or make it hard to defend in court.”

“There’s a tendency to fight for political righteousness, and we need to dull that and make sure we can deliver a pro-life victory in November,” he added.

With a ruling expected in Dobbs by late spring or early summer, I asked Joshua what his expectations were. His ideal would be for Roe to be overturned and for the states to determine legal prohibitions, but he also believes that won’t be the case.

“More likely, Roe won’t be overturned and Casey won’t be overturned, but the Court will dump the viability standard and modify the undue burden on states,” he said. “The ruling will permit pre-viability standards and set a structure to balance different circumstances for states with an interest in protecting life.”

He believes that the Court’s ruling will permit states like Georgia to have its heartbeat bill, but Alabama’s total abortion ban still could be struck down. The question of personhood will be the next level of the abortion debate, which could get rid of Roe. For advocates like Joshua, being pro-life isn’t just about banning abortion but about a culture of life.

I asked Joshua how the everyday person can get involved in the pro-life movement at this particular point in time.

“Regardless of what state you’re in or your stage of life, everybody has time, talent, and treasure they can spend on a culture of life,” he replied. “Support your local pregnancy centers and get involved with advocacy groups.”

“There are plenty of ways to serve women at local pregnancy centers,” Joshua added. “You can volunteer as a counselor, or if you’re in the medical field you donate your time. Another great idea is to host a diaper drive to collect diapers for a local pregnancy center.”

You can find a local pro-life organization to get involved in your state or a local pregnancy center. If you’re a person of faith, you can get your church or synagogue engaged in elevating a culture of life as well.

Find out more about GLA at georgialifealliance.com or on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.