Florida pro-lifers campaign against ballot measure to enshrine abortion in state constitution

ORLANDO, Fla. (OSV News) -- Pro-life advocates across Florida are working diligently to inform voters about a ballot item they say contains "misleading" language and is "dangerous" in regard to women's health.

Florida Amendment 4 states that it will "provide a constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability, which is estimated to be around 24 weeks, or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature's constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion."

Florida's archbishop and six bishops collectively have stated the amendment is an "extreme proposal that legalizes full-term abortion with no protections for the preborn child, including when the child is capable of feeling pain."

Several news articles have appeared in the diocesan publications of the Florida Catholic to inform the public about the amendment. In July, the organization Vote No On 4 Florida -- votenoon4florida.com -- launched a multilingual campaign to defeat the amendment by unveiling new websites in both English and Spanish.

With the backing of Catholic bishops, diocesan respect life offices have worked with pro-life organizations and individual parishes on spreading the word about voting "no" on Amendment 4.

The Archdiocese of Miami interviewed individuals from various walks of life to share their perspectives and experiences concerning abortion on camera. The testimonies are part of a campaign that includes social media videos, billboards, news articles profiling individuals' stories, and a press kit. The videos were to be released Aug. 12 in an effort to inform Floridians why they should vote "no" on Amendment 4.

Parishes up and down the state have sponsored informational forums to explain the language of the amendment and what it means for women in Florida.

Florida's bishops said they have supported a coordinated campaign to mobilize against the Amendment 4 because "respect for human dignity and the fundamental value of human life is of grave importance to both our Church and our state. The threat of abortion remains our pre-eminent public policy priority."

They reported that more than "84,000 vulnerable and voiceless children" were aborted in Florida in 2023.

"Human life is sacred. The dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision of society. Direct attacks on innocent persons are never morally acceptable, at any stage or in any condition," they stated.

At one informational forum, held at St. Lucie Parish in Port St. Lucie, Republican state Sen. Erin Grall told a group of pro-life voters that Amendment 4 "fails to define key terms like 'viability,' 'healthcare provider' and 'patient's health' -- creating loopholes that would allow abortion clinic employees who are not doctors to determine fetal viability and whether a health concern is serious enough to allow an exception for a late-term abortion, up to and including the last month of pregnancy."

"Abortion is a complicated procedure, and it is not without risk," said Dr. Karen Liebert, an OB/GYN and a medical director at Community Pregnancy Clinic in Sarasota. "This amendment removes the doctor from critical decisions, requiring only a 'healthcare provider' which is very broad, and vague. Abortions will be much more dangerous if this amendment passes than they were during the 50 years of the Roe v. Wade era."

Another sticking point of the amendment's language is the use of the phrase "parental notification," which advocates point out is not the same as "parental consent."

"Just as bad, Amendment 4 tells voters that it preserves parental notification while hiding the fact that it eliminates Florida's parental consent law, making abortion the only medical procedure that can be performed on a minor without a parent's permission," Grall added.

Opponents also point to the fact that the measure does not offer an explanation for a "patient's health," which they say could be vaguely defined as mental health.

The last two years have involved a roller coaster of judicial decisions affecting pro-life advocates. In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs. v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that there is no federal constitutional right to abortion and overturned Roe. v. Wade, effectively returning abortion policy decisions to the states.

That same year Florida's Legislature passed a 15-week abortion ban, and in 2023, the state Legislature passed the Heartbeat Protection Act, which would ban abortion at six weeks. It was contingent on the state Supreme Court overturning a prior ruling and allowing the 15-week ban to take effect.

On April 1 of this year, the Florida Supreme Court upheld the 2022 law imposing the 15-week ban, which then cleared the way for the six week ban to take effect. The same day in a separate ruling, the state's high court also said Amendment 4 could appear on the November ballot. If Florida voters approve it, the amendment's enactment would undo the Heartbeat Protection Act's restrictions.

In reaction to the court ruling, Yes on 4 Florida, the organization that sponsored the proposed referendum, said April 1 that by allowing it to appear on the November ballot, the court has given Floridians "a chance to vote to reject government interference with abortion." In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Florida Planned Parenthood Action wrote: "Good news: Abortion is on the ballot in Florida this November, and Floridians will get to make the decision about their own reproductive rights and freedoms!

In an Aug. 5 news release, the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee announced Bishop William A. Wack had just posted a video message on YouTube urging diocesan Catholics to vote "no" on Amendment 4, but also to pray "with us so that others may come to that same conclusion. Pray for children in the womb and their mothers."

"All human life is sacred. The church has been consistent in promoting and defending and cherishing life in all of its forms from natural conception to natural death," Bishop Wack said, "and yet it seems that the most vulnerable is the child in the womb last year alone in Florida over 84,000 babies were aborted and this is with the provisions that we fought so hard to put in place over the decades. Amendment 4, which will be on the ballot in November, seeks to get rid of all of those provisions and in fact to make abortion on demand the law of the state."

He urged voters to educate themselves on what the amendment says and share information with their family members, friends and neighbors.