April 15, 2026
“Do we really need to repeat ourselves and tell legislators to grow a spine? The infamous awards from Students for Life of the backbones delivered to those who were failing to advance pro-life protections are not a joke. They represent the sentiment of voters, who want to see babies and their mothers protected in Law and Service,” said Students for Life’s Kristan Hawkins. “But if not, we are willing to educate voters on the disappointing conduct of those elected to protect the least of these.”
For interviews, email: [email protected].
COUMBIA, S.C. (04-15-2026) – Students for Life Action (SFLAction) students and volunteers will lobby at the South Carolina capitol TODAY from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. local time to urge legislators to move forward and pass the SFLAction inspired “Abortion-Inducing Drugs Act” (S.4760) and SFLAction-inspired “Human Life Protection Act” (H.3457). Despite single chamber passages and previous calls by SFLAction for House and Senate leadership to act on both bills, leadership in both chambers has stalled the bills, allowing internal politics, cross-chamber infighting, and perceived personal gain to put more babies’ lives at continued risk.
“Our team on the ground in South Carolina have fought for those in their state who are too small to be heard over the political noise,” said Hawkins. “But we will not back down, as our track record illustrates. We vote Pro-Life First.”
As part of the lobby day, SFLAction will erect a Cemetery of the Innocents display made up of more than 1,000 crosses on the capitol grounds, a representation of the number of preborn babies killed by abortion in South Carolina during the legislative session.
After significant effort by SFLAction, the SFLAction-inspired “Human Life Protection Act” (H.3457), introduced by Rep. John McCravy, was granted a subcommittee hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Committee Chairman Wes Newton. Notably, for the first time in recent memory, the subcommittee declined to take a vote following the hearing.
Chairman Newton, working in coordination with Speaker Murrell Smith Jr. —who has publicly indicated he does not intend to bring the bill forward—is effectively holding the legislation hostage in committee, despite being listed as a co-sponsor. There is little doubt the bill would pass if allowed to reach the House floor.
Another bill, the SFLAction-inspired “Abortion-Inducing Drugs Act” (H.4760), was introduced by Chairman Newton following increased pressure, including SFLAction engagement in his district related to the act. The bill moved quickly through the House but has since stalled in the Senate.
Senate Medical Affairs Committee Chairman Danny Verdin has neither scheduled hearings nor advanced the bill. Additionally, Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey has reportedly indicated to members that there is no intention to move pro-life legislation until closer to the 2028 primary cycle.
While there are other bills filed in this session, these two measures clearly illustrate where the legislative bottleneck exists in South Carolina.
If House leadership continues its refusal to protect the preborn by not advancing the “Abortion-Inducing Drugs Act” and amending and advancing the “Human Life Protection Act,” SFLAction is prepared to take political action against them in future elections, as was successfully accomplished with the “Sister Senators” in 2024.
READ MORE: Students for Life Action Delivers Moving Boxes to South Carolina Senators Who Betrayed Life
Notably, according to a January 2026 Students for Life of America’s Demetree Institute for Pro-Life Advancement poll conducted by Survey USA, 94% of the Youth Voters support a federal review of Chemical Abortion Pill policy was important, with 50% supporting in-person dispensing requirements for Chemical Abortion Pills (only 27% oppose). Nearly 7 in 10 youth voters support limiting abortion by law.
SFLAction is encouraging South Carolina voters to join the fight by telling House leadership to move the “Human Life Protection Act” and Senate leadership to move the “Abortion-Inducing Drugs Act” forward and pass these pro-life laws to protect preborn South Carolinians from the moment of conception.
TO LEARN ABOUT STUDENTS FOR LIFE ACTION’S “MAKE AMERICA PRO-LIFE AGAIN ROADMAP,” CLICK HERE.
SFLAction has been extremely active in South Carolina throughout the past several legislative sessions, educating voters and engaging lawmakers. During this past legislative session, SFLAction:
- Introduced H. 3457, Human Life Protection Act.
- SFLAction President Kristan Hawkins joined former South Carolina Lt. Gov. Ken Ard on “Wake Up Carolina” and Corey Allen on “Palmetto Talk Live” to discuss the “Human Life Protection Act,” emphasizing the urgent need for GOP leadership to act on the bill and calling out Speaker Smith and Rep. Newton for stalling life-saving protections for the preborn.
- SFLAction launched coordinated efforts in the Palmetto State urging Rep. Newton and Speaker Smith to bring the “Human Life Protection Act” to a floor vote.
- Former Planned Parenthood director and now pro-life advocate Abby Johnson, along with Hawkins, sent a letter to both Speaker Smith and Rep. Newton urging them to hold a vote for the “Human Life Protection Act.”
- Kristan Hawkins joined FITS News and ABC Columbia during a news conference, calling on Speaker Smith and Rep. Newton to pass the “Human Life Protection Act.”
- Students for Life of America Regional Coordinator for the Carolinas, Alicia Foreman, joined FITSNews for one of our Lobby Days.
- Kristan Hawkins held a townhall with Jason Rapert — Clock’s Ticking for Republicans in South Carolina to Act on Pro-Life Legislation.
- Kristan Hawkins wrote an op-ed with Frances Floresca for FITSNews — South Carolina Is Pro-Life, House GOP Leadership Isn’t.
For interviews, contact [email protected].
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The Pro-Life Generation (PLG) is an umbrella organization encompassing the most-cutting edge engagement opportunities for a Vote Pro-Life First Community. PLG includes Students for Life Action (SFLAction), a 501c4, along with its 501c3 sister organization, Students for Life of America (SFLA), that together make up the nation’s largest, pro-life youth organization, managing a grassroots political and policy operation engaging Americans of all ages but with a special emphasis on the largest segment of voters — the Youth Vote. Headquartered in Fredericksburg, VA, PLG/SFLA/SFLAction serves more than 1,400 groups on middle, high school, college, medical, and law school campuses in all 50 states. Our team has more conversations with this generation targeted by the abortion lobby than any other pro-life operation in the world, each week reaching more than 4 million across social media platforms and averaging 1.3 million video views. In addition to SFLA/SFLAction, PLG leads multiple initiatives to lead and serve the future of the pro-life movement including the Campaign for Abortion Free Cities, Standing With You, and the Demetree Institute for Pro-Life Advancement . Over more than 17 years, PLG CEO Kristan Hawkins has grown the operation into a nearly $20M organization, now preparing for an abortion-free America.