Pro-Life Utah, an anti-abortion group, is upbeat these days. In fact, it is hosting a celebration, Utah Life Festival, as it marks the June 24 reversal of Roe v. Wade. It’s been a year since the court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that struck down abortion access as a constitutional right.
In the past, the group has protested and spoken out. But President Mary Taylor said this gathering will feel different with bouncy houses, a petting zoo and a magic show.
“It is not a rally. It is not a march. This is just totally a celebration,” Taylor said. “The mood of the pro-life community is celebratory and optimistic and very, very happy.”
The fight to stop abortion in Utah isn’t over, Taylor acknowledges. The procedure is still legal up to 18 weeks of pregnancy. Utah’s trigger law, which would have immediately banned all elective abortions in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling, remains tied up in the courts.
So does an attempt by state lawmakers to close abortion clinics by preventing license renewals.
Still, Taylor remains hopeful that the anti-abortion movement will win out.
“I really believe that ultimately our trigger ban and the abortion clinic ban will be successful,” Taylor said. But she added she is frustrated by the delay.
“We expect as of the 24th on Saturday that approximately 3,000 babies will have died since the injunction on the trigger abortion ban law was put in place,” she said. “That's upsetting. That's depressing. But in the end, we are optimistic that the bill will be upheld.”
According to the state’s Office of Vital Records and Statistics, 3,127 abortions were performed in Utah in 2021. 2022 numbers are not yet available.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. KUER also spoke with Kathryn Boyd, the CEO of the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah.
Pamela McCall: What do you think the chances are that most abortions will eventually be banned in Utah?
Mary Taylor: I think the outcome of the litigation is bound to be in our favor. I do believe that we will see a ban of all elective abortion, almost all abortion. The exceptions are very few. They're heartbreaking but often necessary. Will that be an end to the problem? No. It's only two hours to Wendover, and I hear Planned Parenthood is trying to put a clinic in Wendover. So is the issue put to rest at that point? Absolutely not.
PM: If abortion is banned in Utah, what is the responsibility of the anti-abortion community for people who do give birth?
MT: I believe with all my heart that we need to put action behind our pro-life beliefs. If we don't want to go back to the days of Roe v. Wade, we have to do something. On the other hand, I hear the accusation a lot that if you're pro-life, you've got to support this baby until the baby is in college. I do resent people being told that, “You're not pro-life unless you are willing to support these children.” That's going a little bit too far the other direction. We are a long, long way from ultimately solving this problem and coming together. I will tell you that I started this journey as adamantly pro-choice. Do I understand why a person would feel that way? I certainly do. We all want the same thing. We all see the same problem that unplanned pregnancies have been with us since the dawn of time.
PM: You said you started out in support of abortion rights. What changed for you?
MT: It was a very personal and very impactful story, which I still carry with me today. I had an abortion when I was about 19. I was a little bit torn with my decision. And I went into an abortion clinic, and I sat down with a counselor, and I asked her about the development of my baby. She told me that it was nothing more than a clump of cells and no way, shape or form a human being. But about five years later, when I was pregnant with my daughter, I read about the development of my unborn child at the very same stage that I had aborted. I was horrified. My baby had a heartbeat and brain waves, little fingers and toes and fingerprints and fingernails. So I spent 45 years coming to terms with that.
