Issue 1 is not health care; this is extermination

By State Sen. Michele Reynolds
R-Ohio
https://ohiosenate.gov/news/on-the-record/

Abortion is killing the black community.

The abortion industry has nefarious roots in hatred and racism. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, was a eugenicist who systematically targeted “inferior races” for decades. She opened her first clinic in a black neighborhood in Brooklyn.

This horrific moment was just the beginning. Abortion is still a lucrative business scheme in America.

Since 1973, this predatory industry has claimed the lives of 20 million black children in the nation. Ohio’s black women and babies have felt this evil year after year. And it continues today.

The black community accounts for just over 13% of Ohio’s population, yet according to the Ohio Department of Health in 2022, 48.4% of abortions performed in Ohio were on black women.

Black babies in Ohio are six times more likely to be aborted than white babies. The abortion machine guarantees that racial and ethnic minorities remain perpetual minorities. 

This is not healthcare – this is extermination.

Whether you claim to believe “Black Lives Matter” or “All Lives Matter,” it is time to question our nation’s tolerance toward the violence committed against women and babies. I do not accept that in 2023, we cannot do better than pit mothers against our children. Accepting the status quo is archaic and barbaric.  

I firmly believe that this debate is rooted in a simple truth: everyone deserves equal protection under the law and the right to live. We should be focused on defending the sanctity of life through the lens of love and compassion. 

But Issue 1 takes this truth and throws it in the trash. It ends any meaningful conversations on protections for women and children.

This is why I spoke so forcefully on the floor of the Ohio Senate in favor of Resolution 215, which opposes Issue 1 on the November ballot.

This amendment, if passed, would be a permanent fixture in our constitution. As written, it opens potential floodgates that we cannot repair.

Late term-abortions will be legal, and health and safety protocols for women and children will no longer be standardized. Life and death decisions for a mother and baby will be made by abortion providers. 

Sound familiar?

Issue 1 fuels the abortion machine more than ever against the black community. 

More black children will die, and more black women will be harmed.

I am one of a bipartisan group of more than 100 black pastors and community leaders who have signed a letter opposing Issue 1.  

The letter says, "As Black faith and community leaders across Ohio who are called to care for God’s people, we urge our fellow Christians, the Black community, and all Ohioans who believe in the inherent value of every person to vote NO on Issue 1 this November. The future of our state, our society, and our race is at stake in this amendment, and we must protect them.” 

“This is not a party line vote, nor is Issue 1 a Republican or Democrat issue. This is a moral issue and for the Black community in particular, it is a life-or-death matter."

Life is worth defending, and Issue 1 targets innocent life.

History warns us against this dangerous proposal. We can and must do better than the devastation Issue 1 creates. 

Instead let’s focus on building a society in which every child, woman, and family can thrive—regardless of their race or background.

Let’s begin that work instead of allowing more innocent black babies to die.

Sen. Michele Reynolds represents Ohio Senate District 3. She holds a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice from the University of Cincinnati, a master of arts in public administration and urban studies from the University of Akron, a master of law from Thomas Jefferson School of Law, an honorary doctorate of philosophy from CICA International University, and Seminary, and All But Dissertation for her earned doctorate degree in business administration from Northcentral University. She is a licensed real estate salesperson, specializing in commercial real estate.