Southern Illinois News

Republican state Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) is imploring parents to join her in standing up for their rights by rejecting efforts to repeal the Parental Notice of Abortion Act (PNA) of 1995.

“As a mother and a grandmother, I will not sit silently by as Democratic lawmakers seek to tie the hands of parents, allowing children to undergo such an important decision without the parents' knowledge,” Bryant said at an Oct. 19 press conference on the PNA and the legislation that would repeal it. “Parental notification is in place because adolescents are not mentally or emotionally prepared to fully grasp or understand the consequences of these actions. I urge my Democrat colleagues not to take away a child's parental foundation at a time when a child may need their parent the most.”

Bryant argues stripping parents of their rights to be informed at least 48-hours in advance of their minor child undergoing an abortion procedure won't benefit young people.

“This will not fix child abuse,” she said. “It will only leave young girls with mental health issues that could last a lifetime if they don't receive the proper support and care that they need. We must take a stand to protect parental rights and safeguard the system in place already that allows a parent to be there for their child at an unimaginably vulnerable time.”

Several other Republican lawmakers have joined Bryant in speaking out, with Senate Republican deputy leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) arguing that the assertion such legislation is now needed in light of recently passed abortion restrictions in Texas have nothing to do with abortion rights in Illinois.

“They know that what is happening in Texas has no effect on what's happening in our state,” she said. “The reality is that Illinois has the most progressive abortion laws on record in the nation. Now whether you agree with that or not that's not changing because of what happens in a different state or federally. If Roe v Wade would be overturned tomorrow, abortion would still be legal in our state. This is an issue about parental rights, whether we believe it is OK to keep parents in the dark about serious health care decisions made by a minor.”