The Catholic Conference of Kentucky is part of a new group — the Yes for Life Alliance — that aims to raise awareness and build support for a proposed amendment to Kentucky’s constitution related to abortion.
The Catholic conference represents the commonwealth’s four bishops in matters of public policy. The conference also educates Catholics about issues of concern to the church and encourages civic participation.
In this case, the conference aims to educate Kentucky voters on the recently passed House Bill 91, a measure that seeks to amend Kentucky’s constitution to clarify that it does not secure or protect a right to abortion or funding of abortion, said Jason Hall, the conference’s executive director.
“Over the past several years we’ve passed several important pro-life laws,” said Hall. “If the constitutional amendment is passed it will protect those laws and prevent the state court from striking them down.”
Among those laws, Hall said, are:
- An ultrasound informed consent law that requires a doctor or qualified technician to perform an ultrasound on a woman seeking an abortion and show the screen images to her. The law also requires the doctor or technician to inform the woman what the images show.
- A law that bans non-medically necessary abortions after 20 weeks.
Hall said state supreme courts in Iowa and Kansas have struck down laws related to abortion. The constitutional amendment is an “effort to ensure that doesn’t happen” in Kentucky.
The measure will appear on the ballot in the Kentucky election in November, 2022.
The Yes for Life Alliance is asking Kentuckians for their support. The alliance is asking supporters to sign a petition thanking state legislators for putting the amendment on the ballot and letting them know of their intention to vote for the amendment next November.
Hall says the CCK’s work over the years “speaks to the sanctity of life and to the dignity of the person. The unborn are particularly vulnerable and in desperate need of legal protection,” he said.
Yes for Life is an “essential piece to prevent all that work from being undone. It’s important that we do this,” he added.
Yes for Life was officially launched Aug. 19 at a press conference at the Kentucky State Fair. In addition to the CCK, it is supported by Kentucky Right to Life, Commonwealth Policy Center, The Family Foundation, Kentucky Baptist Convention and Sisters for Life.
For more information on Yes for Life, visit https://www.yesforlifeky.com/.
