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(9/4/2006)

Life and Liberty Tells Personal Stories of Abortion

Women, families affected by abortion reveal the terrible consequences of abortion

BY BOB ELLIS
DAKOTA VOICE

South Canyon Baptist Church in Rapid City was host to the latest “Proclaiming Life and Liberty” event put on by Western Dakota Families. The Life and Liberty events feature information about the South Dakota abortion ban, Referred Law 6 or HB 1215, which will be on the November 7 ballot this year.

The event was emceed by Pastor Wes Labrier of the Union Center Community Baptist Church in Union Center, South Dakota. The first featured speaker was Representative Larry Rhoden who is the majority leader of the South Dakota legislative House. Rhoden told the hundreds gathered that going back to Roe v. Wade in 1973, even the United States Supreme Court has recognized that allowing abortion for rape and incest was inconsistent with a pro-life position, in that if we recognize that an unborn child is a human life, the origin of its conception doesn’t affect the child’s right to life.

Dr. Donald Oliver, a respected Rapid City pediatrician and board member of VoteYesForLife.com, talked about the medical considerations of abortion. He told the crowd that because we value life at all stages, even children in the womb can now receive life-saving surgery when prenatal complications arise. Oliver said that most abortions occur because women feel helpless. He told the story of one of his patients, a young woman who was raped by her brother and became pregnant. The 16-year-old girl decided to give birth to the child, and she now says that other than herself, the only other innocent person in the situation is her baby. Oliver said that if a 16-year-old can “get it right, so can the rest of South Dakota.”

Oliver also said that despite the objections of the pro-abortion campaign, HB 1215 (Referred Law 6) has a provision allowing for emergency contraception (EC) following a sexual crime.

“We urge women to seek complete and compassionate medical care, as well as justice,” Oliver said. He said that allowing abortions in cases of rape and incest not only hurts women, but can shield the rapist from justice.

Dr. Oliver said that none of the women he’s treated who have had special-needs children have regretted their decision to give birth, and they all found something very special in their children for which they gave thanks.

JoDee Ingalls and her husband Robert have adopted several special-needs children. The newest addition to their family, Joey, narrowly escaped abortion. Joey’s biological father was a wealthy man who wanted a male heir, so Joey and three other children were implanted in two surrogate mothers. The girls were aborted, one of them at 34 weeks. Due to the violence in the womb shared by Joey and his sister, Joey’s placenta was ruptured, and he had to be delivered via emergency caesarian section. Joey has Downs Syndrome and also suffers from a serious liver disease. But his adoptive parents think the world of him, which could be seen as Sandy Rhoden held him onstage while JoDee spoke. JoDee said that there are literally hundreds of couples waiting to adopt special-needs children such as Joey.

Geri Riggs said she had an abortion after being raped because she was afraid of what people would say about her being pregnant as an unmarried woman. This decision brought years of devastating anguish.

“Being a rape victim doesn’t let you escape the devastating consequences of abortion,” she told the crowd. But Riggs said that after she confessed her sin of abortion to God several years later, God began to heal her both physically and emotionally. She said that when a woman has an abortion after being raped, it is like being violated a second time, and said that while she believed she could endure being raped again if she had to, that she could not go through an abortion again.

Riggs said most women who have been raped understand what it is to be victimized and don’t want to subject their unborn child to the same thing, which is why 85% of women who become pregnant because of rape choose life for their child.

John and Sylvia Rhoden told of their decision as a couple to abort their child and the shame they immediately felt over doing this. John said they didn’t even speak of it together for many years. However, one day a missionary couple told them that God could forgive even abortion. Sylvia said they have since repented of the sin of abortion and are now being healed by God’s love and grace. Sylvia also mentioned that it is very rare that a married couple remains together after having an abortion, the strain of the guilt is so wrenching. John also said that if we fail to pass Referred Law 6 in November, we as a people will be held accountable for the sin of abortion in South Dakota.

A DVD was shown which detailed how HB 1215 was passed in the legislature this year, and some of the debate that went into it. The video also showed ultrasound footage of a baby in the womb being torn apart by an abortionist’s instrument; the doctor who performed this abortion is said to have never performed another abortion after viewing this footage himself.

The evening closed with several area pastors praying for an end to abortion and confessing the sin of abortion in South Dakota and the United States.

Life and Liberty events are scheduled for September 10 at 5:00 pm in the new Bentley Building in Bison, September 17 in Mobridge, and September 24 at the park pavilion in Aberdeen. Check the Dakota Voice calendar for more information. To schedule a Life and Liberty event in your area, email lrhoden@gwtc.net or call 605-985-5461.