On September 13, 2007, 22-year-old Laura Hope Smith entered a Women’s Health Center to have an abortion. As expected, her unborn child did not survive. Neither did Laura.
People are increasingly aware that abortion remains the number one killer of Black Americans. They are shocked that nearly a thousand Black babies die by abortion in the United States every day.
What many don’t know is that an increasing number of women of color also are dying as a result of abortion.
In August, Protecting Black Life launched a billboard campaign in Cincinnati to inform the community at large, and to warn women in particular, about this tragic truth. The billboards featured the lovely face of Laura Hope Smith and were strategically located in 10 of Cincinnati’s Black neighborhoods, where most of the city’s abortions occur.1 During the first 30 days of the campaign, nearly 11 million people saw our life-preserving billboards. If that weren’t cause enough to celebrate, the billboard company kept our boards up an additional 21 days at no charge, allowing more than 7 million more people to see our message of life.
I named this outreach our Roll Call campaign, because if a roll were called, young women like Laura could not respond. Because of abortion, they are no longer with us.
We yearn to see an end to the devastation abortion inflicts on mothers, babies, fathers, families and futures, and we’re doing something about it! To learn more about this crucial campaign or how to host one in your city, visit www.ProtectingBlackLife.org or call 513.729.3600.
1 Ohio Department of Health. (2012). Induced Abortions in Ohio, 2012.
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