Georgia's House Bill 1 (HB1)
By: Rev. Martin Hawley, National Legislative Director
(Photo: Julia Greer)
Georgians Taking on the Abortion Industry.
State Representative Bobby Franklin (43rd district) filed this crucial piece of legislation in the fight to end abortion in the state of Georgia. In fact if passed, HB1 will entirely do away with the practice and make it a criminal offense. A portion of HB1 reads:
Any person performing an abortion in this state shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be punished as provided in subsection (d) of Code Section 16-5-1. The license of any physician indicted for an alleged violation of this Code section shall be suspended until resolution of the matter. The license of any physician convicted of a violation of this Code section shall be permanently revoked. The provisions of this Code section shall be in addition to any other provisions relating to the killing of a fetus or any other person.
This bill boldly asserts the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death and requires that the state of Georgia, rather than the federal government, defend that right to life with all the means at its disposal. We are proud to support this unambiguously Pro-life measure and all that it represents in offering the promise of saving the lives of countless innocent unborn children, and in sparing untold numbers of women the lifelong anguish and often lasting physical consequences from an abortion. The key arguments in HB1 of particular interest are:
(a) The State of Georgia has the duty to protect all innocent life from the moment of conception until natural death. We know that life begins at conception. After three decades of legal human abortion, it is now abundantly clear that the practice has negatively impacted the people of this state in many ways, including economic, health, physical, psychological, emotional, and medical well-being. These, too, are areas of legitimate concern and duty of this state. The General Assembly therefore makes the following findings of fact:
(1) A fetus is a person for all purposes under the laws of this state from the moment of conception;
(2) The Georgia Constitution, at Article I, Section I, Paragraph II, provides: 'Protection to person and property is the paramount duty of government and shall be impartial and complete. No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws.' Because a fetus is a person, constitutional protection attaches at the moment of conception. It is therefore the duty of the General Assembly to protect the innocent life that is being taken;
We are so convinced of the necessity of HB1 that we have designated it as absolutely "must pass" legislation in 2009. But the boldly worded, sound arguments in this bill are insufficient to guarantee its passage. The commitment and character of its author, Representative Bobby Franklin, is also inadequate to defeat the mountain of opposition and special interest that will arise to stop it. And our constant lobbying efforts will come up short as well, unless – that is – unless each of you join your voices with Bobby, with other sponsors, and with us to let our elected representatives know that we will not rest, we will never cease, until the lives of the unborn are protected under the laws of this state. Working together this year we can stop the bloodshed and end abortion in the state of Georgia.
Working Together for Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
Martin
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