Editor's note. The following excerpt is taken from a passionate statement delivered by Virginia state Senator Steven Newman explaining why he was co-sponsoring a ban on partial-birth abortions.
We will define
it in detail later, however if I could change the name I would. A better
name is four-fifths infanticide. That term more accurately describes this
act in which the doctor performs this non-emergency, multi-day procedure
by dilating the cervix and then manually breeching the child. Later the
baby's feet are pulled out of the womb into the birth canal, except for
the head which is purposely kept inside the cervix.
And if you can imagine, while that doctor holds with one hand a warm, confused,
and defenseless mostly born child, he does the unthinkable. He coldly and
purposely rams a hollow metal tube or scissors into that young child's still
fragile scull. And in doing so he hollows out that child's potential, he
hollows out his opportunities and his life. But in this act he hollows out
all of us too.
In this single repugnant act, an important line is crossed. Despite our
disagreements over abortion, we now have allowed a child to be killed who
is mostly outside her mother and outside of the framework of Roe v. Wade.
Now we have allowed infanticide. And if we as Virginians, sit back and do
nothing, history will view our decision as one made by a cruel and violent
people, who turned their heads to a procedure that is clearly wrong because
of entrenched beliefs on other issues.
The American Medical Association agrees with us that this procedure should
be banned, and it is never medically necessary.
Virginia currently does not allow us to keep tabs on the number of "Partial-Birth
Abortions" performed in this state, though they can be counted. I have
here a copy of the abortion form. But, let me be clear that if there is
one, or thousands of this horrible act being performed in our state we can
not stand by while our conscience begs us to eliminate this all together.
Finally, I want to urge everyone, pro-life and pro-choice, Republican and
Democrat and all other Virginians of conscience to join this effort. The
victim is only inches away from birth. This is infanticide, and not abortion,
and this procedure should be banned in Virginia.