Mississippi Abortion-Rights Advocates, Abortion Opponents Demonstrate Over Efforts To Close State's Last Abortion Clinic

Abortion-rights advocates and abortion opponents in Jackson, Miss., on Sunday demonstrated over efforts to close the Jackson Women's Health Organization, the only clinic in the state that provides abortion services, USA Today reports (Walton, USA Today, 7/17). The clinic opened in 1995 and sees about 4,000 women a year, according to National Organization for Women President Susan Hill (Brown, AP/Houston Chronicle, 7/15). The clinic recently had to stop performing second-trimester abortions because of regulatory obstacles put in place by abortion-rights opponents (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/16). The antiabortion group Operation Rescue/Operation Save America targeted the clinic this year to "send a message" to antiabortion advocates "that the battle to end abortion can be won," USA Today reports. "This is a grass-roots battle that will be won with the gospel of Jesus Christ," OSA Director the Rev. Flip Benham said, adding, "Pretty soon abortion is going to become as ugly a word as slavery." Six abortion clinics have closed in Mississippi in the past decade because of restrictive laws and pressure from abortion-rights opponents, Michelle Colon, president of the Jackson chapter of NOW, said. If the clinic closes, women could get abortions from private physicians in the state at a higher cost, according to USA Today (USA Today, 7/17). The right to abortion in Mississippi has become more restrictive in part because of recent legislation, including measures that require both parents or guardians to consent to the procedure before a minor can undergo an abortion and a 24-hour waiting period for all women seeking abortion (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/16). NOW and other abortion-rights groups have gathered in downtown Jackson to counter the weeklong protest, the AP/Chronicle reports (AP/Houston Chronicle, 7/15). "To me this isn't really a protest, it's really abusing women ... screaming and yelling at [women] is abuse," Hill said, adding, "We don't intend to be run out by a bunch of people screaming at us" (USA Today, 7/17).

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