I am a Christian young woman, 17 years old, and an ambassador for Jesus Christ.

Today, I’m advocating on behalf of an oft-neglected minority in our state: unborn babies.

Abortion is the intentional murder of a human being. I believe we are humans from the moment of conception, when an egg and sperm meet, our DNA is created, and we aren’t exactly like anyone else on earth. We are designed specially by our Creator. We have worth and value, each and every one of us. We each deserve to be protected by laws and by each other.

The basic right to life is under attack in our state. Humans are being killed, and many refuse to acknowledge the fact that this is happening.

I, along with the Maine-based King’s Coalition for Abolition, submitted a bill this legislative session to stop the genocide against unborn children. LD 975 is a bill which, if passed, would criminalize abortion in Maine. It would extend the same rights to unborn children that apply to born people. It simply clarifies that humans are humans from the moment of conception, repeals laws which allow abortion, and lays out the charge of murder for anyone who performs an abortion.

There have been questions; let me answer a few here.

The removal of a dead child after a miscarriage is not an abortion, and is therefore not prohibited by this bill. As defined in LD 975, “‘abortion’ means the intentional interruption of a pregnancy by the application of external agents, whether chemical or physical, or the ingestion of chemical agents with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus, regardless of the length of gestation.” This means that intentionally killing a baby in any way is an abortion, but interrupting a pregnancy to remove a child who has already died is not.

A Cesarean Section is not an abortion, therefore it is not prohibited by this bill. Again, it is interruption of a pregnancy, however, the intention is to produce a live birth.

Birth control is not prohibited under this bill, except those methods which are abortifacient in nature, either by starving the baby (medication abortion), or by preventing the implantation of the baby (copper IUD, emergency contraception).

There is also a requirement in this bill to report miscarriages. This is not designed to cause women further distress after a miscarriage, however, if we are going to treat unborn humans as we treat other humans, we must report their deaths. I understand it may be hard for some, but in order to treat unborn babies as humans in some ways, we must be consistent in every way.

I plead with you to repent of any apathy you may have towards the plight of the unborn, to turn to Christ in repentance and faith, and to join me in my fight to end abortion. I plead also with fellow young people. You may not think you can do anything to change the world around you, but you’re wrong. We’ll never change the world until we try. And with God on my side, who can stand against me?