ST. LOUIS — As Missouri Democrats headed to the polls to vote in the presidential primary Saturday, volunteers collected signatures for "The Right to Reproductive Freedom" ballot initiative. It’s aimed at ending the state's ban on abortions.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom has until May 5 to get more than 170,000 signatures, and so far, organizers believe they’re on track to get it done.
At the same time they were collecting signatures, pro-life organizations marched to the Gateway Arch, saying their fight was not over just because Roe v. Wade was overturned.
“There's no inherent constitutional right to have an abortion,” President of Lutheran Church of Missouri Senate Matthew C. Harrison said. "And so millions of children are still continuing to be aborted, and we just want to raise the level of awareness. And also, let people know who are in that situation that there's help."
The ballot initiative on the table right now says, “The government shall not deny or infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom.”
President of Americans United Rachael Laser said they’re fighting, too, with a lawsuit challenging abortion bans. She said abortion isn’t just a reproductive freedom issue. It's also a religious freedom issue.
“What I'm proud about isn't just the courage of our plaintiffs in our lawsuit and the challenges to Missouri's abortion bans, but the way that that's helped lead to this ballot initiative," Laser said. "Hopefully, that will be on the ballot in November so that the voters can overturn these abortion bans advancing both reproductive and religious freedom."
Executive Director of Coalition Life Brian Westbrook said those who are pro-life need to continue to stand together, as he believes the courts won’t protect life at the end of the day.
“It doesn't just take one group to continue to protect life, we all have to work together. And the one thing we know is that the pro-life movement is 100% united today to continue to protect life specifically in Missouri to fight back with some of these ballot initiatives,” Westbrook said.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom said it isn't releasing signature numbers yet. In a statement, the organization said, "The more Missourians hear about our campaign, the more they're energized to fight back against Missouri's cruel abortion ban and put families, not politicians, back in charge of personal medical decisions. Our grassroots movement continues to build momentum, and we're going to keep doing the work to grow support across the state."
You can find out more about the petition and the language that could be on the ballot here.
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