On Jan. 13, the Virginia General Assembly reconvened. Unfortunately, the state capitol is closed to constituents this year, but delegates and senators are meeting remotely and in person in their district offices.

The biggest threat to Virginia’s pro-life laws is a proposed “Right to Abortion” constitutional amendment. Bill SJ2 was carried over to the 2021 session, with a new bill number.

Most importantly, the parental consent law in place since the early 1990s is under threat of being overturned.

The parental consent law requires the consent of one parent before a teenaged daughter has an abortion. This is commonsense legislation to protect minors, a story I know all too well.

I did not have a right to even know my daughter was considering an abortion, and yet I was responsible and had to sign a consent form for follow-up care after a botched, legal abortion at a clinic rated the best in Virginia.

Just because abortion is legal, it is not necessarily safe.

We must write or call our delegates and senators immediately, and demand they vote in favor of keeping parental consent on the books. This is an area where legislators respond to the values of their constituents.

Who does not want to know their daughter is considering aborting their grandchild? The decision involved is a life-or-death situation for her unborn child. The outcome for the adolescent is better with the family involved, since the abortion decision impacts a girl’s total life.

When you can involve the family, it’s a positive situation. Family unity breaks down when our daughters have secret abortions.

Following the science is important, and the science shows that babies’ hearts start beating at 18 days in the womb. Abortion stops a beating heart.

Eileen Roberts

Parents for Life

Spotsylvania