Anti-Abortion Groups Target Black Women in Latest Campaign with "Black Children are an Endangered Species" Billboards

Anti-abortion groups target black women in latest billboard campaign saying, "Black children are an endangered species.

Some anti-abortion billboards erected around metro Atlanta have sparked controversy because of their claim that African American women get a disproportionate amount of abortions compared to women of other ethnic backgrounds. The billboard features a sad African American boy with the headline, "Black children are an endangered species." The billboards were erected by anti-abortion groups Georgia Right to Life and Radiance Foundation. The groups claim 56% of black women in Georgia get abortions. The groups also maintain that abortion clinics are often placed in "urban areas where blacks reside." They also compare abortions to segregation, saying, "Abortion is the tool [segregationists] use to stealthily target blacks for extermination."

It should be noted that according to the Centers for Disease Control, there is little evidence to support the claims black children are in danger because of abortion rates. The reality is erecting a billboard with such a message sends a negative message that black women are more likely to turn to abortion as a method of birth control rather than pointing to the obvious fact that whites control these abortion clinics. So, who is endangering the life of whom?

In 2006, 57.4 percent of the abortions in Georgia were performed on black women, even though blacks make up about 30 percent of the population, according to the most recent figures from the federal Centers for Disease Control. Of the 37 states that reported abortion data by race, Georgia was second only to New York and Texas in the number of abortions performed on black women. Only Mississippi and Maryland reported a higher percentage of abortions going to black women than Georgia.

But there was little evidence that abortions had made black children unusually endangered. The fertility rate, or births per 1,000 women of childbearing age, among black women remains higher than the national average and has inched up in recent years, according to C.D.C. data. Source: NY Times