“You are all life savers”

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Gov. Greg Abbott on Saturday thanked hundreds of abortion advocates who gathered in Austin to celebrate both last year’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and the near-total ban on abortion that now exists in Texas.

“You are all life savers, and thousands of newborns are the result of your heroic efforts,” Abbott told a crowd attending the 2023 Texas Life Rally, one of the largest pro-abortion gatherings since the U.S. Supreme Court. passed a resolution last summer that abolished the constitutional right to abortion.

This is the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization has activated a Texas trigger law banning abortion in almost all cases. But Texas almost a year earlier effectively blocked access to abortion at about six weeks into pregnancy, and that same year its own law withstood a Supreme Court scrutiny. This Texas measure was signed by Abbott.

“We promised that we would protect the life of every child with a heartbeat, and we did. I signed into law doing just that,” Abbott said, also noting in front of a crowd that he had signed into law a ban on mail-order abortion drugs.

The crowd spent the day on the south lawn of the Texas Capitol celebrating their victory, the years-long fight to end abortion.

Prominent Texan abortion advocates have applauded the work of Abbott and other GOP leaders on legislation to ban the procedure. Joe Poyman, executive director of the Texas Life Alliance, celebrated the near cessation of abortion in the state, noting harsh penalties for healthcare professionals who perform or authorize the procedure.

“Let’s continue to make Texas a state where abortion is completely unthinkable and where everything from conception to natural death is protected and prosperous,” Poyman said.

While Abbott and others praised the work of the anti-abortion movement, others at the rally said they thought there was more to be done.

“We want abortion to be unthinkable,” Austin’s Aidan Garza said, echoing a refrain printed on posters and spoken by several rally participants.

Garza said he marched to the Capitol, which preceded the rally, as a member of his congregation, Saint Elias Antioch Orthodox Church. He said he wanted to see a federal law banning abortion.

Kathy Martin, who also came with a small group from her church in Austin, said she plans to support organizations and churches that can help pregnant Texans with everything from diapers to child care to make the option of abortion less attractive.

Abbott stressed the need for mothers to be supported. He pointed out that the state has invested more than $100 million in the “Alternatives to Abortion” program, which helps mothers before and after childbirth.

Critics of the program say the program is classified in how it allocates funds and is a “waste” of money. The entire process of subcontracting the program has not been made public, and it is difficult to determine exactly how well it has helped mothers.

However, Abbott advertised the program by saying that it “provides the needs of women before childbirth and for three years after childbirth.”

He stressed that the state “should redouble its efforts to protect mothers and children,” but did not provide details.

Abbott’s comments also lacked any mention of creating exceptions for rape or incest, which remains the focus of Democrats in this legislative session.

But the defenders gathered at the Capitol are hoping to maintain their momentum by not giving any concessions to Texas’ near-total ban on abortion, including for rape and incest.

Molly Kemp and Valerie Munoz said they oppose amendments to the current abortion ban.

Kemp and Munoz, both 19, joined the rally as members of the Pro-Life Aggies, a secular anti-abortion organization at Texas A&M University. They say their generation is awakening to a “pro-life movement.”

“It’s traumatic enough,” Kemp said of rape or incest. “But we don’t want to create a second tragedy.”