by Katarina White | Apr 10, 2024 | Opinion
By Katarina White |
In a resounding declaration against over 50 years of genocide of the most defenseless among us, the Arizona Supreme Court delivered a landmark ruling, firmly upholding a state law that safeguards the sanctity of life. The case of Planned Parenthood v. Mayes marked a pivotal moment in Arizona’s battle against the slaughter of innocent unborn children.
At its core, the court’s ruling represents a stand against the vile forces that seek to devalue and discard human life at its earliest stages. The law, A.R.S. § 13-3603, explicitly prohibits abortion at any stage, “unless it is necessary to save [the woman’s] life [emphasis added].”
The Arizona Supreme Court’s ruling serves as a powerful reminderthat every human being, from the moment of conception, possesses inherent dignity no matter the size or age. That’s something we should all be celebrating today, and it’s something we should be ready to defend at every given moment.
Right now, those who advocate for the continuation of this mass genocide, including proponents of the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment, are seeking to amend the state constitution to permit abortion up until birth. Their obstinate refusal to acknowledge the humanity of the unborn is an indictment of their souls and a stain on the conscience of our society. That’s why we should be ready to meet them with the truth at every turn that every human life is precious—and abortion destroys that precious life.
As we celebrate this monumental victory, let us recommit ourselves to the cause of life with renewed vigor and determination. Let us continue to fight against the culture of death that seeks to extinguish the most vulnerable among us. And may we remember that while this victory is significant, the battle is far from over.
We must build on this momentum to protect life by stopping the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment. We must decline to sign the petition to put this horrific amendment on the ballot and actively oppose any efforts that threaten to undermine the progress we’ve made in safeguarding the rights of the unborn. And our esteemed state legislators must hold firm in an unwavering commitment to uphold the sanctity of life. We cannot be swayed by fear. Abortion is not merely a choice; it is the termination of a precious life. We cannot abandon these unborn babies. Now is the time to be courageous advocates, standing steadfast in defense of those who cannot speak for themselves.
Katarina White serves as Legislative District Co-Chair for Arizona Right to Life. To get involved and stay informed with the “Decline to Sign” initiative, visit the Arizona Right to Life website. Katarina also delves deeper into the proposed amendment through the “Conservative Seoul Show,” where she presents the “Sanctity Unveiled” segment. You can join her as she explores the challenges faced by the sanctity of life in the State of Arizona here.
by Corinne Murdock | Mar 8, 2024 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
A Scottsdale priest, Fr. Don Kline of St. Bernadette Catholic Church, urged the public to decline to sign a petition advocating for the total legalization of abortion up to birth.
Fr. Kline issued his stance in a statement for the advocacy group, Decline to Sign. The priest encouraged Arizonans to inform abortion advocates seeking signatures that abortions take the life of unborn children, and to inform their neighbors and peers about the petition circulating. Fr. Kline concluded his remarks with a prayer.
“When moments like this happen in our history we know that there is evil present and we need to invite God to be present and to give us the strength to confront this evil,” said Fr. Kline. “We pray, Lord, for the wisdom and the courage to do what we need to do to support these mothers, especially those who are suffering, who are afraid, who are not sure what to do. Raise up good people to support them, that they may be open to life, to the gift of life that God has blessed them with.”
Decline to Sign arose in response to the petition launched by Arizona for Abortion Access (AAA) to put total abortion legalization as a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot. The state currently allows abortions at up to 15 weeks’ gestation.
Fr. Kline and the local clergy aren’t alone in their opposition to the petition.
Last week, Senate President Warren Petersen (R-LD14) and all GOP senators signed and released a statement, the Arizona Right to Life Declaration, urging Arizonans to refuse to sign AAA.
“[I]t is an assault on God’s value and sovereignty regarding the sanctity of human life,” reads the declaration.
AAA’s proposed ballot question would create a “fundamental right to abortion,” meaning it would prohibit the denial, restriction, or intervention with an abortion even after fetal viability if a healthcare professional determines that the unborn child presents a threat, either to her mother’s mental or physical health. The petition defined fetal viability as sustained survival outside the womb without the intervention of “extraordinary medical measures.”
The proposed ballot question has the backing of the state’s top Democratic leaders: Gov. Katie Hobbs signed the petition in December, and a number of leading progressive organizations have issued their endorsements including ACLU of Arizona, Affirm Sexual and Reproductive Health, Healthcare Rising Arizona, Arizona List, NARAL Arizona, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona (PPAAZ).
AAA has until July 3 to gather nearly 384,000 valid signatures to put the initiative on the ballot.
At the helm of AAA are leaders in the pro-abortion movement such as former PPAAZ chair Chris Love and NARAL Arizona senior advisor Jodi Liggett, and the Tempe-based abortionist Candace Lew. The group also has the campaign finance assistance of one of the key players in Arizona’s Democratic dark money network, Dacey Montoya.
According to Arizona campaign finance records, over $4.5 million of AAA’s $5.8 million in funding has come from out of state advocacy groups:
- Over $3.1 million from the Fairness Project, based in Washington, D.C.;
- $1 million from Advocacy Action Fund, based in California;
- $250,000 from Think Big America, based in Illinois;
- $150,000 from The Green Advocacy, based in Washington, D.C.;
- $20,000 from Our Children Our Future, based in California
Over $1.1 million came from Arizona-based organizations and individuals: $600,000 from Arizonans Fed Up With Failing Health; over $278,300 from Healthcare Rising Arizona; over $117,100 from PPAAZ; $100,000 from Paradise Valley philanthropist Juanita Francis; $21,300 from Arizona List; $10,000 from philanthropist and medical marijuana doctor Gina Berman; $10,000 from Lew; and $5,050 from Reproductive Freedom for All Arizona.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Katarina White | Jan 30, 2024 | Opinion
By Katarina White |
It’s bad enough that the abortion lobby is fully committed to its disturbing agenda to enshrine abortion up until birth in the Arizona Constitution. But now, it appears, that the overwhelming majority of the funding to get this measure on our ballot in November isn’t even coming from within our state.
I recently examined the campaign finance reports for both Q3 and Q4 of 2023 for Arizona for Abortion Access (the group driving the campaign for this constitutional amendment) and noticed a concerning trend. Most of the dollars being raised to support this campaign are coming from groups outside Arizona.
In Q3 (July 1 – September 30), the campaign’s funding landscape revealed that individual Arizonans contributed just $12,202 while corporations and LLCs based in Arizona contributed just over $87,000. That’s a total of just over $99,000 coming from inside our state for this ballot measure. So, how much funding came from outside Arizona? More than $2.3 million! If you do the math, that means a mere 4% of the total financial backing for the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment is coming from within our state while 96% of the funding has been injected from the outside. In a campaign that should be driven by local voices, this difference is not only staggering, it’s alarming.
Adding to this disconcerting narrative, the Q4 (October 1 – December 31) data continues this disheartening trend. Despite an increase in contributions from Arizona individuals and corporations—totaling $1,133,282 and constituting 33% of total contributions—the specter of external interference looms ominously. Contributions from outside Arizona commanded a 67% share during Q4 for a total of $2,244,207. Additionally, the number of out-of-state individual contributions, 186, surpassed the count of individual contributions from Arizona, 112.
Compounding these concerns is the revelation that the largest business contribution from both quarters comes from an organization named The Fairness Project, a Washington, D.C.-based entity. Ironically, The Fairness Project champions direct democracy for ballot measures, emphasizing collective decision-making by the public. And yet, the group paradoxically channels significant funding from outside Arizona to influence the state’s constitutional trajectory. In the November 2023 election in Ohio, where voters were deciding on enshrining abortion as a fundamental right in the state, the Fairness Project contributed a staggering $2.2 million to the Ohio United for Reproductive Rights Campaign.
Overall, the Ohio United for Reproductive Rights Campaign garnered a substantial $23,820,999 in out-of-state funding—83% of their total funding. Unfortunately, this substantial financial support played a pivotal role in the passage of the initiative, leading to the tragic amendment of abortion as a fundamental right in Ohio. This alarming pattern of out-of-state funding continues in Arizona, where the Fairness Project has contributed $3,124,502 to the Arizona Abortion Access Campaign, constituting 54% of the total income in both Q3 and Q4.
Arizonans stand at a pivotal juncture, facing not only the potential erosion of our constitutional values but also the disturbing reality that external forces are actively shaping our state’s destiny. Even worse, at the core of this issue is the shocking possibility of embedding in our state’s constitution the unconstrained authority to terminate pregnancies right up until the moment of birth—an appalling decision of profound consequence.
Now, the people of Arizona must decide. Will you allow external forces to determine the course of our constitutional future and allow abortion up to birth? Or will you decline to sign this amendment and stand for life?
Katarina White serves as Legislative District Co-Chair for Arizona Right to Life. To get involved and stay informed with the “Decline to Sign” initiative, visit the Arizona Right to Life website. Katarina also delves deeper into the proposed amendment through the “Conservative Seoul Show,” where she presents the “Sanctity Unveiled” segment. You can join her as she explores the challenges faced by the sanctity of life in the State of Arizona here.
by Katarina White | Jan 5, 2024 | Opinion
By Katarina White |
Imagine a future where abortion is sanctioned until the very moment of birth, parental consent becomes a relic of the past, and taxpayers foot the bill for all abortions. This is not a distant dystopia; it is the gruesome reality that will unfold if a new controversial amendment—the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment—finds its way onto our state’s ballot this November. Now, Arizona voters stand at a crossroads—sign a petition to advance the possibility of this horrific amendment to the Arizona Constitution or decline to sign the petition and stand for the sanctity of life.
The heart of this matter lies in the proposed amendment’s language, asserting, “Every individual has a fundamental right to abortion…” This means that if it gets passed, the Arizona Constitution will be amended to make abortion a fundamental right for all individuals. The amendment’s text also explicitly states that the State shall not enact, adopt, or enforce any law, regulation, policy, or practice that “denies, restricts, or interferes with an abortion after fetal viability that, in the good faith judgment of a treating health care professional, is necessary to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.”
This means that if this amendment passes, it will not only embed abortion as a fundamental right in our state Constitution, but it will remove any constraints on the abortion industry. Just read that direct quote from the proposed amendment again. The text explicitly bars the state from interfering with abortions after fetal viability, contingent upon the “judgment” of a health care professional. Is there any surprise as to why the abortion industry is championing this amendment so heavily? The removal of gestation limits offers abortion businesses unrestricted access to perform abortions at any stage without legal impediments, which will give them significant economic and financial benefits!
Analyzing the language of the amendment reveals three major implications:
- Abortion up until birth.
- Abortion with no requirement for parental knowledge and/or consent.
- Abortion completely funded by taxpayers.
Under this proposed amendment, a 15-year-old girl could abort her baby up until the time of birth, without her parent’s knowledge or consent, and send the bill to taxpayers. That’s not only dangerous, it’s insane.
Proponents of the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment assert that the amendment’s primary objective is to save the mother’s life; however, upon closer examination, the amendment intentionally misleads voters by instilling an urgent fear that the mother’s life is at risk. Anthony Levatino, MD, JD, a board-certified obstetrician gynecologist, challenges this perspective, stating, “There are several serious conditions that can arise or worsen typically during the late second or third trimester of pregnancy that require immediate care. In many of those cases, ending or ‘terminating’ the pregnancy, if you prefer, can be life-saving. But is abortion a viable treatment option in this setting? I maintain that it usually, if not always, is not.” While the amendment writers want the public to believe that this amendment is necessary to save the mother’s life, clearly it’s nothing more than a sympathetic tactic to garner support.
On September 12, 2023, the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment petition campaign began. If petitioners are successful in gathering 383,923 signatures by July 3, 2024, the amendment will appear on Arizona’s ballot this November.
We can’t let that happen.
That’s why it is imperative for Arizona voters, taxpayers, and citizens to take a stand. And many pro-life organizations are doing so right now by leading a grassroots effort to educate Arizonans about why they should “Decline to Sign” this petition.
“Decline to Sign” aims to prevent the Arizona Abortion Access Amendment from even reaching the ballot by engaging in extensive education and awareness efforts. Volunteers associated with this grassroots initiative are dedicated to approaching Arizona voters, taxpayers, and citizens with kindness and providing a comprehensive understanding of the proposed amendment’s potential consequences. “Decline to Sign” volunteers believe that once the proposed amendment’s true nature is revealed, Arizona voters, taxpayers, and citizens can make an educated and informed decision whether to support, or not to support, the proposed amendment. The “Decline to Sign” initiative challenges the proposed amendment’s false impression that it advocates solely for “women’s reproductive health.” The “Decline to Sign” initiative also seeks to shed light on the proposed amendment’s harsh and permanent implications.
The proposed Arizona Abortion Access Amendment presents a crucial juncture in the ongoing discourse about the sanctity of life. As the petition process unfolds, Arizona voters, taxpayers, and citizens face the responsibility to protect the sanctity of life in our state and ensure that the voices of all life within the community are heard.
Katarina White serves as Legislative District Co-Chair for Arizona Right to Life. To get involved and stay informed with the “Decline to Sign” initiative, visit the Arizona Right to Life website. Katarina also delves deeper into the proposed amendment through the “Conservative Seoul Show,” where she presents the “Sanctity Unveiled” segment. You can join her as she explores the challenges faced by the sanctity of life in the State of Arizona here.
by Ed Steele | Dec 6, 2023 | Opinion
By Ed Steele |
The abortion lobby has made it clear. It wants to erase every pro-life law and enshrine abortion up to birth in the Arizona Constitution. If it’s successful, that would mean:
- No more requirement to inform women of the risks of abortion.
- No requirement to inform women of options other than abortion.
- No requirement for ultrasounds prior to abortion.
- No 24-hour waiting period.
- No requirement for parental consent for minors.
That last one is particularly shocking. It would open the door for sex traffickers, sex abusers, and other sexual predators to force women and underage girls into abortions. This is the terrifying reality that could be facing our state.
Right now in Arizona, the abortion industry is hard at work to collect the 383,923 valid signatures they need to put this constitutional amendment on the General Election ballot next November. While this may seem like a daunting task, they are well organized and well-funded, receiving support from the likes of Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, and NARAL. Perhaps you’ve seen them at libraries, coffee shops, or the dollar stores asking you to help “protect women’s healthcare” or “support the right for women to make their own decisions about healthcare.” But here’s an interesting fact. The initiative never mentions “women.” It only mentions “pregnant individuals.” So, what are they really pushing?
It’s important to make the distinction between the old abortion debate that’s been raging for the last 50 years and the fight we face today. In the old abortion debate, everyone had a place on the spectrum regarding when it’s ok to take the life of a baby during pregnancy—from the moment of conception all the way up to birth. Both sides were in a constant battle to determine the inflection point where their side had the most support.
But this fight is completely different.
In this ballot measure, Arizona for Abortion Access (the group seeking this constitutional amendment) has drawn the inflection point for allowable abortion right up to the child’s birthday. That means anyone who signs this measure is actively supporting the end of a baby’s life right up until the moment that he or she is born.
Based on polls across the country, a vast majority of the population is not okay with abortion up to the moment of birth and should reject this initiative. But that’s why it’s so important that the general public know what they are being asked to sign.
This initiative is written with intentionally vague language which will allow “healthcare professionals” to use loopholes to perform abortions right up to the moment of birth. But don’t just take it from me. Look at the initiative petition itself, which says that the state cannot act in a manner that:
DENIES, RESTRICTS OR INTERFERES WITH AN ABORTION AFTER FETAL VIABILITY THAT, IN THE GOOD FAITH JUDGMENT OF A TREATING HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL, IS NECESSARY TO PROTECT THE LIFE OR PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HEALTH OF THE PREGNANT INDIVIDUAL.
“…in the good faith judgment of a treating healthcare professional…”? Who gets to define “healthcare professional”?
“…is necessary to protect physical or mental health…”? What about pregnancy could be so dangerous to a mother’s mental health that it could be used to justify abortion up to birth? You can see where this is heading…
There once was a time when Planned Parenthood and the abortion lobby repeated the slogan that “abortion should be safe, legal, and rare”? But this is where they were always heading—abortion up to birth and for practically any reason.
Arizona, it’s time to wake up and show up. We need to educate our friends and relatives with the truth about the abortion initiative petition. We need to wake up our church communities, so that our congregations can be properly informed. And we need to stand up anytime we see abortion activists collecting signatures for this petition to let potential signers know that their signature could allow abortion up to birth. (To get an information packet about this effort to share with your pastor, you can email AZdeclinetosign@gmail.com.)
This is literally a matter of life and death. Which side will you choose?
Ed Steele is a husband, father, grandfather, and Mesa resident who is helping to lead the Decline to Sign – AZ Abortion Act Movement. You can find out the latest by following this movement on X (Twitter) @declineabortion.
