From LIFENEWS.COM

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com Editor
March 24, 2008

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A leading African-American pro-life advocate says Barack Obama and other black leaders must confront the phenomenon of black women having abortions at significantly higher rates than their white counterparts. Instead of advocating more abortions, the leader says Obama and others should promote alternatives.

Walter Hoye, who heads community relations at the Progressive Missionary Baptist Church of Berkeley, California, told LifeNews.com about the problem.

Hoye points to new statistics published in January by the Alan Guttmacher Institute, a research affiliate of Planned Parenthood.

AGI found black women were 4.8 times as likely as non-Hispanic white women to have an abortion.

Though the total number of abortions on women overall has decreased nationwide, the total number of abortions in the African-American community has gone up.

AGI showed 683,294 abortions on black women in 2005 or 56% of all legal abortions done across the country. Ultimately, from 2000 to 2005, the total number of abortions performed on black women rose 153,040 during that time period.

"These numbers represent an average annual increase of 30,608 aborted black babies per year or an annual daily increase of 84 aborted black babies per day," Hoye told LifeNews.com.

To bring the figures into perspective, Hoye examined population data and found that the number of abortions on black women and babies annually "is the equivalent of killing more than the entire African-American population of Oakland, California, Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia combined."

Hoye, who heads the Issues for Life Foundation, calls for all African-American leaders to do the math and understand the impact of abortion on the African-American community.

"Abortion is the Darfur of the African-American community. We must work together towards ending abortion," he said.

Hoye asked Obama and other black leaders to promote the de-funding of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion business that has numerous abortion centers in predominantly black communities.

He also called for African-Americans to support pro-life candidates and for the promotion of post-abortion programs to help the high number of black women having repeat abortions to stop the cycle.

"With an estimated 1,900 black babies being aborted every day, African-American leaders must do the math, understand the impact of abortion on the African-American community," Hoye concluded.

Related web sites:
Issues for Life Foundation - http://www.issues4life.org