MADISON (WKOW) -- In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Roe v. Wade legalized abortion rights and the impact of that decision has remained a heated debate 40 years later.
Governor Walker has made his stance on the issue clear by proclaiming January 22, 2013 'Protect Life Day' in Wisconsin. "I think it's a good cause in terms of standing up for life, something I've talked about for years," Walker said Tuesday.
It's something NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin Executive Director Jenni Dye questions. "Well, the manner in which he proclaimed that today was 'Protect Life Day' is interesting because it was done without a lot of public knowledge and publicly, Governor Walker has been saying he wants to take a more moderate approach this term," Dye said.
The Governor says he's issued hundreds of proclamations. The 'Protect Life Day' proclamation claims more than 540,000 unborn children are lost to Wisconsin families. Anti-abortion group Wisconsin Right to Life thanked the Governor for the proclamation in a statement released January 18.
"What we've seen is despite the fact that Roe versus Wade continues to be in place, states like Wisconsin have put restrictions that harm womens' abilities to make choices for themselves and for their families," Dye said. She believes it's their job to make sure the full impact of the historic ruling stands and in the past two years, they've lost ground through restrictions on abortions and the defunding of women's reproductive health programs.
Groups on both sides of the issue held demonstrations or events on Tuesday for their cause.
