‘Value Them Both’ – Kansas Campaign to Protect Mothers and Babies

A coalition of Kansas citizens and organizations is working together in a campaign titled “Value Them Both.” The goal is to protect preborn babies and their moms from the abortion industry by passing a state constitutional amendment that would allow the state legislature to pass laws restricting and regulating abortion.

The groups leading the campaign are Kansas Family Voice, Kansans for Life and the Kansas Catholic Conference.

The Value Them Both amendment:

  • Reverses the Kansas court case that created a nearly unlimited “right” to abortion. Because of that decision, every reasonable regulation of abortion in the state may soon be struck down.
  • Safeguards laws that protect and help women and babies.
  • Takes steps to rein in the abortion industry.

The court case referred to is a 2019 decision where the Kansas Supreme Court struck down the Kansas Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act, prohibiting partial birth abortions. The court somehow discovered a “right” to abortion in the state constitution – something everyone in the state had somehow missed since it was written in 1859.

The court looked at the Kansas Constitution’s Bill of Rights, which says, “All men are possessed of equal and inalienable natural rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” It found that these rights applied to women, but not to the unborn child in a mother’s womb.

Value Them Both says that “Kansas’ annual number of abortions climbed by a staggering 9.1%” after that decision, for a total of 7,542 pre-born lives lost.

The state constitutional amendment was placed on the August 2022 ballot after the legislature voted to do so earlier this year. Knowing they will face stiff opposition and an influx of out-of-state dollars from pro-abortionists like Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America and the ACLU, pro-life organizations are starting early to raise awareness, support and financing.

We connected with Kansans for Life Director of Communication Danielle Underwood. She told us how crucial the 2022 vote will be, noting that pro-abortionists are already working to fight the amendment:

The Value Them Both Amendment is the most important pro-life vote for Kansas in more than a generation. It began with the abortion industry strategically working to force our state into becoming what they termed “a safe haven” for unlimited, late-term abortion. With the amendment threatening this plan, the abortion industry is already trying to mislead Kansans about what Value Them Both does. We need time to connect pro-life Kansans, gather the resources needed to win, and counteract their misinformation campaign with the facts.

Underwood said that abortionists want to put women at risk by dismantling 25 years of bipartisan laws that regulate the abortion industry in the state. She said, “Value Them Both simply protects our common-sense pro-life laws.”

Kansas Family Voice is a Focus on the Family allied-organization, part of a network of state-based Family Policy Councils that work to promote life, parental rights, religious freedom and free speech in public policy.

Kansas Family Voice’s Director of Policy and Engagement Brittany Jones told us how she came to be involved in pro-life advocacy:

I knew at the age of seven that I was called to work in politics and shape culture.  I saw that each child – both in the womb and outside – was made in the image of God and had inherent worth and value. I wanted to use my calling and my voice to make a difference. As a young, conservative female attorney reading how the Kansas Supreme Court had disregarded the wellbeing of both women and their babies, I knew that I had been called to Kansas for this issue.

She also explained how people can get involved in the ongoing Value Them Both campaign and why it’s important to have support from pro-life people – both in the state and across the nation:

We expect the abortion industry to carpet bomb the state with false and misleading information. The abortion industry is attempting to force a New York style law onto Kansas – something they could not do through our legislature – so we believe they will flood our state with millions of dollars and bring in outside groups to confuse Kansas voters.

We need all hands on deck across Kansas and the country to pass Value Them Both and protect moms and babies. We are engaging in an aggressive grassroots campaign to make sure Kansans know the truth about the Value Them Both amendment.

You may think this issue doesn’t matter to you because you don’t live in Kansas – but it does. The abortion industry is using Kansas as a test case to force pro-life states to become safe havens for abortion. If it can happen in Kansas, it can happen in other states, so we have to take a stand now.

Visit ValueThemBoth.com to learn how you can give financially, sign up to volunteer, or promote Value Them Both at your church.

Related articles and resources:

Focus on the Family Pro Life Issues: Abortion

Kansans for Life

Kansas Family Voice

Kansas Legislature Puts Pro-Life Measure on 2022 Ballot

Value Them BothAmendment and FAQs

Photo from Shutterstock.

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