A coalition of pro-life organizations has launched a life-affirming advertising campaign that will place billboards in the exact locations California Gov. Gavin Newsom raised pro-choice billboards that were criticized as blasphemous.



The 2022 Newsom-led campaign promoted California as a sanctuary state for women seeking an abortion by placing billboards in Republican-leaning states. Newsom paid for the billboards with money from his reelection fund. "Need an abortion? California is ready to help," one billboard read. Billboards in Oklahoma and Mississippi promoted abortion while quoting Scripture: "Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no greater commandment than these," it said, referencing Mark 12:31.



In response, a coalition of pro-life organizations has launched a pro-life billboard campaign. The billboard includes an image of a man, and a woman distressed over a positive pregnancy test. The text on the billboard reads: "Save Sex for Marriage. Plan Your Future, Not Your Abortion." Further, the billboard says, "Over 85 Percent of Abortions Are Performed on Unmarried Women." It invites individuals to visit a website, AbortionlessFuture.com, which includes information about abstinence and a link to pro-life crisis pregnancy centers.



"We need to have a conversation in this country - including in the pro-life movement - about the true cause of most abortions," said coalition spokesman Mark Harrington. "The billboards are intended to remind people of the inconvenient truth that the main driver of abortion is irresponsible sexual activity."



A news release from the pro-life coalition quoted CDC data that said the abortion rate for married women is 46 abortions per 1,000 live births, but for unmarried women, it is 412 abortions per 1,000 live births.



The Newsom billboards were "blasphemous," the news release said.



"If men and women stopped having sex outside of relationships truly committed to protecting the lives of the babies they create, the demand for abortion would largely disappear," the news release said. "Pro-life resources could then focus on helping families welcome their unexpected additions."



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