Senators urge Biden to fly pro-life flag at the White House for Respect Life Month
Three U.S. senators have asked President Joe Biden to fly the Pro-Life Flag at the White House in honor of Respect Life Month.
In a letter dated Sept. 23, Sens. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., urged Biden to fly the Pro-Life Flag “prominently in front of the White House and federal agency buildings for the month of October” to recognize Respect Life Month. Unveiled two years ago by the Pro-Life Flag Project, the flag serves as the international symbol of the pro-life movement.
The flag's design, created by Brazilian graphic designer Nanda Gasperini, was one of more than 1,000 designs submitted as part of a worldwide contest. The senators elaborated on the symbolism behind the flag in their letter, writing:
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“The flag’s white background symbolizes the innocence of a child in the womb. The two footprints at the center of the flag represent the humanity of the unborn child. The hands above and below the footprints symbolize the mother’s love and protection for her child. The parallel pink and blue stripes show that the pregnancy involves two unique lives and that both lives are deserving of full human rights.”
Noting that the Biden administration “displayed the Pride Flag at the White House for Pride Month,” the senators requested that Biden “also honor Respect Life Month and fly the Pro-Life Flag to send a powerful statement that our country celebrates Americans of all beliefs and is committed to protecting innocent and vulnerable life.”
As the senators explained, “The history of Respect Life Month dates back to 1972, when the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops started a respect life program in October, in anticipation of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.” The Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe ruling legalized abortion nationwide and remained in effect until last year, when the court decided in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that the U.S. Constitution did not contain a right to abortion.
After writing that “citizens and organizations across the country observe Respect Life Month to promote respect for human life,” the senators concluded the letter by insisting that “the commitment to protecting and loving both unborn children and mothers is shared by Americans in every state and Territory across our great nation.”
The lawmakers suggested that “flying the Pro-Life Flag during Respect Life Month would show the federal government stands alongside its citizens in upholding the unalienable truth that all people, including the unborn, have the right to life.”
As an outspoken critic of the Dobbs decision and a supporter of legal abortion, Biden is unlikely to take the Republican senators up on their offer. The letter comes months after the White House ignited a firestorm for prominently displaying a Progress Pride Flag on White House grounds during LGBT Pride Month, recognized in June.
Even before the backlash over the display of the LGBT Pride Flag at the White House earlier this year, Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., introduced the “Old Glory Only Act” that would “prohibit the flying of any flag other than the United States flag over United States diplomatic and consular posts.” More than six months after its introduction in January, the bill has attracted 45 cosponsors, all Republicans. It has not yet come up for a full vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: [email protected]
