America’s leading abortion provider endorses Gary Peters in U.S. Senate race

In Michigan’s open U.S. Senate race, Planned Parenthood Action Fund recently announced their endorsement of Congressman Gary Peters.  Planned Parenthood is America’s leading abortion provider.  More than 300,000 abortions are performed annually at Planned Parenthood abortion clinics. 

In Gary Peters, Planned Parenthood has found itself a champion for abortion on demand.  Peters opposes any piece of legislation would restrict abortion in any way.  He favors tax funded abortions, opposed legislation to ban partial-birth abortion, opposed legislation to ban abortion after 20 weeks and opposed legislation to ban sex-selection abortions. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT GARY PETERS’ POSITIONS ON LIFE ISSUES

LEARN MORE ABOUT PLANNED PARENTHOOD ABORTION AGENDA    

Congressman shares story of how son's ultrasound led him to speak up

During the debate over the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, Congressman Mark Meadows (R-NC) shared how his son's ultrasound led him to speak up on the abortion issue.

Successful trip to March for Life for Students for Life of Michigan

Here are 2 pictures of the 112 prolife college students from Michigan traveled to the March for Life with Students for Life of Michigan.  Thanks for speaking up for life! 

U.S. House passes No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representative voted to pass the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act by a vote of 227-188.  All nine Michigan Republicans voted in favor of the bill while all 5 Michigan Democrats voted against it. 

H.R. 7, sponsored by Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Dan Lipinski (D-Il.), would codify the principles of the Hyde Amendment on a permanent, government-wide basis, applicable to both longstanding federal health programs and to the new programs created by Obamacare. Under the bill, health plans that cover elective abortions would not qualify for federal subsidies, although such plans could still be sold to those who wish to purchase them with personal funds.

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ROLL CALL VOTE

Spring 2014 RLM News now online

The Spring 2014 issue of the RLM News is now online.  The issue includes articles about the success of our petition drive and the passing of former Lt. Governor Connie Binsfeld. 

SPRING 2014 RLM NEWS

Florida man sentenced to 14 years in prison for tricking girlfriend into taking abortion pills

John Welden will be spending a good deal of time behind bars after he tricked his pregnant girlfriend into taking abortion pills, which led to the death of their unborn child.

John Andrew Welden, 29, had pleaded guilty in September to forging a prescription for Cytotec, the brand name for misoprostol, in March 2013 and relabeling the bottle as the common antibiotic amoxicillin. He convinced his former lover, Remee Jo Lee, that she had an infection and needed to take the pills he claimed his father had prescribed. She miscarried within hours.

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Local Michigan TV station includes report on March for Life

The mid-Michigan ABC affiliate included a story on the March for Life last night and participants from the Diocese of Saginaw.

Thousands of marchers braved the cold and the snow to rally on the National Mall for the 41st annual March for Life rally, the biggest anti-abortion event in the world.

Six busloads of protestors from the Diocese of Saginaw drove 12 hours from Michigan and joined the protestors in the nation's capital.

"It's like ‘wow' it's out of my dreams. I have never seen so many people, it's fantastic," said Jordan Anguiana, a student at the New Vow Catholic Center.

FULL STORY

March for Life coverage in Detroit papers

Both the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press have stories from news services on their web sites.  The article in the Free Press from USA Today includes quotes from prolife Michiganders.

Mary Baxter, 46, came all the way from Grand Rapids, Mich., with her two daughters, Sarah, 18, and Ashleigh, 14.

"We're here today in peaceful protest, just like Martin Luther King," Mary Baxter said. "Life is the first gift we are all given. No one has the right to take that away."

Sarah said she leads a group that stand outside of abortion clinics to protest. Sometimes, that means starting at 5 a.m. before he has to go to school.

"We just stand on the sidewalk and pray," Sarah says. "Sometimes people honk and support but sometimes people even throw cans at us."

President Obama issues statement supporting abortion on demand

On the 41st anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, President Barack Obama has issued a statement in support of abortion on demand. 

Without any thought to the unborn child, President Obama ends his statement by saying, "Because this is a country where everyone deserves the same freedom and opportunities to fulfill their dreams."

Don't you wish we had a prolife president who really believed that?

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S RECORD ON LIFE

Reflecting on the sanctity of human life

Forty-one years have passed since the landmark Supreme Court rulings that changed our nation's response to pregnancy. Forty-one years and the words Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton still darken the hearts of all who defend the right to life.

Because of Roe and Doe abortion is legal through all nine months of pregnancy.  Because of Roe and Doe some do not have the right to live and breathe and grow and laugh and love. Because of Roe and Doe hundreds of thousands of people will peacefully march on January 22, in Washington, D.C., to be a prolife witness, protesting the so-called right to abortion.

Right to Life of Michigan President Barbara Listing said, "After 41 years we are still here, still ready to march and defend the lives of babies preparing to be born. Positive changes are being made in Michigan, the prolife movement is thriving, but our life-saving work continues because there is a need to value human life."

According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, a total of 23,230 induced abortions were reported in 2012. This is a 52.7 percent decrease since 1987-the year when the largest number of induced abortions was reported.

Listing said, "We celebrate the decrease in abortions performed in Michigan and mourn the lives lost. Abortions represent a void in our communities. This reality leaves many heartbroken. Abortion hurts women, babies and families."

To think that an abortion only impacts a mother and her child preparing to be born removes the genuine pain family members experience when abortion touches their lives. That is why Right to Life of Michigan is made up of local prolife groups in the cause of protecting life.  As communities pulling together, prolife people join to offer real options to women facing untimely pregnancies.

Listing said, "I am honored to represent Right to Life of Michigan. We are people who acknowledge that human life is precious and irreplaceable. The values we embrace lead us to reject the taking of human life to resolve the challenges of life itself. The memorial of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton give us an opportunity to reflect on the sanctity of human life."

If you or someone you know is experiencing an unplanned or crisis pregnancy or would like information about help after an abortion, options are available. For help, please call 1-800-57 WOMAN (1-800-579 6626). Or, visit RTL.org  for a comprehensive listing of pregnancy centers and counseling agencies in Michigan. Assistance is free and confidential.

Michigan's Attorney General Office has filed complaint against former abortionist

Operating room at Alexander's clinic (MLive.com)

In late 2012 and throughout 2013, we've chronicled the case of abortionist Robert Alexander.  In later 2012, the Women's Medical Services abortion clinic in Muskegon was shut down by Muskegon Fire Department due to the filthy conditions in the clinic.  After a series of WOOD TV investigative reports revealed how complaints against Alexander were ignored, Michigan legislators moved to change how complaints against doctors are dealt with. 

Gena Rinckey has now discovered that the Michigan Attorney General's office, on behalf of the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, has filed a complaint against Alexander for the conditions at his now closed abortion clinic. 

On November 14, 2013, Michigan’s Assistant Attorney General, Debra M. Gagliardi, filed an Administrative Complaint against Dr. Alexander for incompetence.  All of this relates to the 2012 closure of the Woman’s Health Services clinic in Muskegon.

“Incompetence” is defined under MCL 333.16106(1) (Michigan law) as, “a departure from, or failure to conform to, minimal standards of acceptable and prevailing practice for a health profession, whether or not actual injury to an individual occurs.”

The complaint also indicates that unsecured narcotics were on the premises in Muskegon, and that Dr. Alexander was unable to locate the drug log book. He itemized and returned unused drugs salvaged from the premises at a later date.

FULL STORY

Watch the March for Life live tomorrow

If you couldn’t make it to the March for Life this year but still want to share in the experience, you can by watching the March for Life live on your computer.

The March for Life website will have video coverage on their website and a mobile app to download, details here:

Meanwhile, EWTN is airing live television coverage from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
        

41 years of Roe v. Wade

Texas Alliance for Life has put together a video which discusses the 41 years of Roe v. Wade featuring a woman or child who was born in each of the years since Roe was decided.  

Prolife Michigan college student head to the March for Life in D.C.

Last night more than 100 prolife college students left on buses with Students for Life of Michigan to the March for Life in Washington, D.C.

It's great to have so much enthusiasm for the sanctity of human life on college campuses in Michigan!    

U.S. Representatives from Michigan speak out for life on Congressional floor

On January 15, a variety of prolife U.S. Representatives gave prolife speeches on the House floor.  Speakers included Michigan prolife U.S. Represenatives Bill Huizenga, Tim Walberg, and Dan Benishek. 

You can view their speeches below.  Thank you Rep. Huizenga, Rep. Walberg and Rep. Benishek for speaking out for life. 

Life = Opportunity

Our "Little Rascals" ad features the message that "Life = Opportunity."

The battery company Duracell has produced a moving ad featuring NFL player Derrick Coleman whose story exemplifies Life = Opportunity.  Watch it below. 

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan remove plagiarized stories from web site

In December, we published a blog post showing that Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan (PPAM) had plagiarized a variety of abortion stories from the web site of NARAL Pro-Choice America, another pro-abortion organization.  PPAM had also edited the stories to leave readers unaware that some of the women featured in the stories had their abortions in the 3rd trimester. 

After backing off their threat to take the Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act to the ballot with a referendum, PPAM has now updated their web site and quietly removed the plagiarized stories from their “Enough is Enough” web site.   

Proud of our "F"

The state of Michigan has again been given an "F" on the annual report card given out by the pro-abortion group NARAL Pro-Choice America.  At Right to Life of Michigan, we're proud of our "F" because it means our prolife laws are helping to save lives.  The report doesn't take into account the recently passed Abortion Insurance Opt-Act.  If it did, maybe NARAL would have given Michigan an "F-." 

Abortions in Michigan are down 52.7% since 1987.

Michigan abortion advocates back away from referendum threat

During debate over the Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act, abortion advocates threatened to organize a petition drive and gather enough signatures to put the legislation on the ballot in November.  They would have been required to gather about half the number of signatures which were gathered by prolifers. 

Today, Kary Moss of the ACLU admitted to the Detroit Free Press that they don’t have the resources to do a petition drive at this time. 

After claiming for months that Michigan voters didn’t support the Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act using biased and poorly-worded polls, pro-abortion groups conducted a new round of polling which likely used more accurate language and polling apparently didn't turn out the way they wanted it to.  

Abortion rights supporters won’t pursue a petition drive to repeal a law enacted last year requiring women to purchase an additional rider to their insurance if they want coverage for an abortion.

“The timing is a bit rough,” said Kary Moss, executive director of the ACLU’s Michigan chapter.

Supporters would have had to gather 161,305 signatures by mid-March in order to get a repeal of the law on the November statewide ballot......  

Pam Sherstad, spokeswoman for Michigan Right to Life, said she wasn’t surprised by the decision.

“When we were out and about collecting our signatures, we saw the support to give people an option on whether they want to include elective abortion in health insurance plans,” she said.

FULL STORY

MICHIGAN'S VOICE

Use #WhyWeMarch to share why you participate in the March for Life

The March for Life Education & Defense Fund is asking prolifers to share why they're taking part in the 41st Annual March for Life using the hashtag #WhyWeMarch. 

Throughout this Sanctity of Life Month and leading up to the March for Life on the 22nd, we encourage pro-lifers to upload a photo to Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter with the hashtag #WhyWeMarch and the reason you'd like to share for "why we march" for life on January 22nd.

FULL STORY

Six free prolife events during Black History Month

February is Black History Month. Right to Life of Michigan Educational Fund is sponsoring six free events to highlight the disproportionally high abortion rate in Black communities. Events will be held in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Ypsilanti, Jackson and Clinton Township. The events will also feature diaper drives for local pregnancy centers.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THESE FREE EVENTS

Pro-abortion group focuses on trending prolife laws

Chuck Donovan, president of the Charlotte Lozier Institute, summarizes a recent analysis of abortion-related laws compiled by the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute.  The report notes that between 2011 and 2013, 205 abortion restrictions were passed by state legislatures. 

The wave of pro-life bills enacted from 2011 to 2013 reflects the 2010 elections and the reaction they represented to the Obama administration’s overreach on health care. In 2000, Guttmacher estimates 31 percent of U.S. women lived in one of the 13 states considered “hostile” to abortion. By 2013, nearly double that percentage, 56 percent, lived in one of the 27 states now labeled hostile to abortion.

FULL STORY

Former Planned Parenthood abortionist fined and reprimanded

The Delaware Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline has fined Timothy Liveright $1,500 and issued a letter of reprimand.  Liveright is an abortionist who formerly performed abortions at Planned Parenthood in Delaware.  He admitted to sexually harassing patients. 

A former Planned Parenthood doctor will pay a $1,500 fine and receive a letter of reprimand from the state to resolve problems that emerged from his work at the abortion provider’s Wilmington clinic last year.

The state Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline on Tuesday approved the terms agreed upon late last year by the state and Timothy Liveright, the doctor.


According to the agreement, Liveright admitted to misconduct including sexual harassment in 2012 and failure to adequately document procedures and results of procedures in patient charts while performing medical or surgical abortions.

FULL STORY

Planned Parenthood abortion numbers grow alongside government funding

Did you know? In 1997, Planned Parenthood made one adoption referral for every 18 abortions they performed, and received more than $150 million from taxpayers. 

In 2012, they made one adoption referral for every 149 abortions they performed, and received more than $500 million from taxpayers.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PLANNED PARENTHOOD'S ABORTION AGENDA