Sam Miele, director of Massachusetts Family Action and chair of the Compassionate Care Coalition ballot committee, says his group is collecting signatures for a petition referendum.
“Our goal is to gather 49,716 certified signatures. Now, a lot of signatures get thrown out for whatever reasons, so our goal is 100,000 signatures. We think that’s not only a good goal on paper, but it's also very doable, and it allows a very large buffer in case some get thrown out,” Miele says.
The law, signed by Gov. Maura Healey in August, allows abortion up to the moment of birth. However, the law has not taken effect yet.
Supporters have defended the measure as healthcare, but Miele pushes back against that characterization, arguing the statute goes too far.
“Healthcare implies bringing help to somebody who is sick. It's not just aiding you in whatever you want to do. The point of medicine is to make somebody better. Well, if there was nothing wrong with you, then in this case, it's a complete violation of the Hippocratic oath, in my opinion,” Miele states.
As reported by AFN, the law is causing a divide in the Democrats in Massachusetts as not all supported the bill, calling it “extremist” and “barbaric.” These lawmakers noted that there were already laws in place to allow late-term abortions only to protect a mother’s life or in cases of severe fetal anomalies.
Miele’s coalition — which includes pro-life Democrats — has a strict window to meet its signature goal before the law officially takes effect.
“Massachusetts is not a lost cause. People say that. People say we're a left-wing state. We're a purple state. People just want common sense politics, and this governor has overplayed her hand and gone way too radical for the majority of voters in this state,” Miele says.
More information about the repeal effort can be found online at repeal188.com.
