Laci King

While driving down the interstate in Atlanta, GA I gazed out the window at billboards that litter the highway. Fast food ads, lawn care treatments, hair salons, and the next ...an anti-abortion billboard. I almost want to turn around to ensure I've read it correctly. ...What did that just say?! The alarmingly in your face billboard features a giant photo of a scared young African American boy and big bold capital letters that read "Black children are an endangered species." The billboard is one of 60 Pro-life ads from the "Too Many Aborted Campaign," exclusive to the state of Georgia calling for black women to "Get Outraged."

According to the Center for Disease Control, over 40% of black pregnancies end in abortion and black women account for the majority of the abortions performed in Georgia, despite the fact they only comprise a third of the total population. The "Too Many Aborted Campaign," sponsored by Georgia Right To Life, links the already taboo issue of abortion to race, sparking an even greater controversy.

The billboards are positioned throughout the city of Atlanta, specifically targeting one or more urban areas where 94% of Planned Parenthood clinics are located. Ryan Bomberger, responsible for designing the billboard stated "it wasn't intended to induce shame upon the black race, merely a campaign that exposes an industry that targets African Americans." On a national level, black women have three times the rate of abortions than whites and two times the rate of other racial groups.

Back to the bottom line...the billboards. Shock was the desired intent and no matter which side of the fence you stand on, they definitely prove to be thought invoking. Black leaders in the community and all across the country proclaim mixed feelings, and the billboards have generated national attention on the issue. I understand the billboard as an educational tool for the pro-life campaign, but at what point has it gone too far?

While statistics show that blacks have more abortions than other racial groups, is it okay for pro-lifers to resort to borderline racist techniques to further their cause? How would you feel seeing these ads on the streets of your hometown?

Here is a link to the billboard: http://img.mywire.com/Pubs/display/2010/02/14/10666229.jpg

Photograph Credit:
Sabrina Segal