The anti-abortion movement had a major win, when Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback instituted a law that will ban a common type of second-trimester abortion, which will go into effect on July 31.

The specific procedure now outlawed is the dilation and evacuation procedure. It typically involves vacuum aspiration and dilation and curettage, commonly referred to as D and C. The only time a second-trimester abortion will be legal is if it is necessary to save the life of the mother, or to prevent some other type of irreversible damage to her.

The doctor would perform the abortion by inserting a cannula, essentially a hollow tube, into the uterus. The cannula is attached to a bottle and a pump that creates a vacuum to remove tissue from the uterus. If the procedure is performed after 16 weeks the doctor will likely have to use a grasping instrument such as forceps to grasp pieces of “larger tissue.” Sam Brownback, along with the National Right to Life Committee drafted the measure because the procedure just described is essentially dismemberment.

The question of whether or not life begins at conception is not even an issue when it comes to second-trimester abortions. It would be difficult to ignore the blatant signs of life present at this point in pregnancy. According to The American Pregnancy Association, around the 14th week of pregnancy, “Fingerprints which individualize each human being have now developed on the tiny fingers of the fetus.” Second-trimester abortions are murder, and it appears that people are finally starting to recognize this as truth.

Kansas is not the only state that currently recognizes this procedure as horrific. Currently, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Carolina are working to pass similar measures. “This law has the power to transform the landscape of abortion policy in the United States,” National Right to Life Committee president Carol Tobias said in a statement.

One of the biggest reasons that people support D and C abortions is because they have chosen to be ignorant. It is probably safe to assume that before Kansas banned this particular type of second-trimester abortion, most people did not truly understand what it encompassed. However, when issues such as this gain national attention, people are forced to take notice, and to become educated to the facts.

During a dilation and evacuation procedure, the fetus is literally removed from the woman in pieces. Dr. Tony Levatino is a present day avid anti-abortion supporter who used to perform this type of abortion. He wrote an article describing the actual procedure, and it is absolutely nauseating. This is his description of the part of the procedure in which the doctor would use a clamp, or a similar instrument to begin removing the fetus from the mother. “You feel something let go and out pops a fully formed leg about 4 to 5 inches long. Reach in again and grasp whatever you can. Set the jaw and pull really hard once again and out pops an arm about the same length. Reach in again and again with that clamp and tear out the spine, intestines, heart and lungs.”

In no world should a procedure such as this one be legal. Pro-abortion rights groups are planning to fight the legislation to win back the “right” to take an unborn child apart piece by piece. The banning of second-trimester abortion is the beginning of a new era for anti-abortion groups everywhere. Hopefully, similar legislation will continue to be passed throughout the United States.

Victoria Razzi is a freshman magazine journalism major. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at vcrazzi@syr.edu and followed on twitter at @vrazzi.

Published on April 12, 2015 at 10:13 pm