Mississippi Aims to Become America's First Abortion-Free State
Mississippi, America's poorest, fattest and most religious state, is aiming to set yet another record in U.S. history – to become the nation's first abortion-free state.
And the Rev. Flip Benham of Operation Save America says his organization is working hard to make it happen.
In a press statement on Thursday, Benham noted that Mississippi currently has a strong desire to become the first abortion-free state in America and "authorities" were moving to shut down the state's only abortion center in Jackson run by Planned Parenthood. Details of the move are expected to be revealed at a press conference in Hattiesburg on Friday evening.
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"Mississippians have done everything possible to eliminate the horror of abortion from their state. From the Governor, through the Congress, to the Health Department, the electorate has sounded a clear trumpet call to end abortion in the state of Mississippi," noted Benham in the statement.
The church in Mississippi, he said, had answered the call to rid the state of abortion by keeping tabs on the activities of Planned Parenthood which has benefitted from significant federal funding to keep operating in the state.
On Friday, Operation Save America, will join with two other pro-life interest groups, States of Refuge and Pro-life Mississippi, at the press conference to draw attention to the work of the Planned Parenthood site located at 214 s. 27th Avenue in Hattiesburg, Miss., at 4 p.m.
"Abortion will end when the Church of Jesus Christ rises up, leaves the shelter of her church buildings and engages the culture at the very gates of hell," said Benham.
The Christian Post reached out the Benham's office on Thursday for further comment on his organization's quest to become America's first abortion-free state but he was unavailable for comment.
A Gallup poll in February revealed that with 58 percent of residents describing themselves as very religious, Mississippi ranked as the most religious state in America. With a population of nearly three million people in 2010 according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Mississippi's average of very religious people was 40 percent higher than Vermont's, America's least religious state.
A recent news report also highlighted that not only is Mississippi the most religious state in America, it is also at the bottom of the heap when it came to median income which stood at $36,850 per household. The poverty rate in the state is a staggering 21 percent and it ranks among the states with the highest unemployment numbers, obesity rates and the poorest education systems. The state which is described as being in an economic black hole, also ranks among the states with the lowest health insurance coverage.
Another report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted last year that for the sixth year in a row, Mississippi led the pack of most obese states in the U.S. with nearly 34.9 percent of its population classified as obese.
