A battle is underway in Arkansas as an amendment to the state’s current abortion laws proceeds. Abortion was banned in the Natural State following the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v Wade and is only permitted in cases where the mother’s life is in imminent danger. The Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024, however, if passed, will allow abortion for the first 18 weeks of pregnancy for any reason, and later in cases of rape, incest, or if there is a threat to the mother’s life.
Amendment 68 of the state’s constitution describes current policy as protecting “the life of every unborn child from conception until birth.”
Abortion groups, however, have not expressed support for the new proposals, including Planned Parenthood Great Plains, which has reacted with caution. Spokesperson Anamarie Rebori Simmons said the group is committed to “eliminating arbitrary restriction” and “political limitations” and argues that politics has no place in a doctor’s exam room.
Arkansas Right to Life (ARtL) states that if the proposal passes, it will make it impossible to enact future measures aimed at protecting the unborn.
Officials will add the proposals to the November ballot if the group that initiated a petition gathers the necessary 90,704 supporters by July. Arkansans for Limited Government, who leads the initiative, said they are determined to restore “the freedom that was taken from individuals when Roe v. Wade was overturned.”
When Republican Attorney General Tim Griffin certified the petition in January, the organization celebrated and said it was a “step closer” to that goal. Mr. Griffin stated that his personal views are “strongly pro-life,” but he cannot prevent the proposals from reaching the ballot paper if the demand is there. “I am guided by the law and the law alone,” he said.
Arkansas was one of several states to pass abortion prohibition laws following the Roe ruling. The procedure is banned from conception in Alabama, Idaho, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia.
