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Published Tue, May 25, 2010 05:03 PM
Modified Tue, May 25, 2010 05:12 PM

Anti-abortion advocates rally for 'Choose life' plates

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COREY LOWENSTEIN - clowenst@newsobserver.com

More than 100 anti-abortion protesters, like Carol Wilson, of Raleigh, with her granddaughter Corrie Beth Johnson, 2, of Cary, center, rallied in front of the N.C. General Assembly, urging lawmakers to approve a license plate bearing the slogan "Choose Life." About half the states in the country have them.

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FROM STAFF REPORTS

RALEIGH -- Advocates for an anti-abortion rights license plate emblazoned with "Choose Life" rallied outside the Legislative Building Tuesday in hopes of pushing through a bill to create the controversial tag.

The crowd of about 150 criticized Democratic legislative leaders for rejecting the special license plate while approving tags for interests such as NASCAR and protecting sea turtles.

"When does it make more sense to have a license plate for animals than a license plate for humans," said Rep. Pat McElraft, a Carteret County Republican.

Planned Parenthood, which operates clinics that perform abortions, criticized the "Choose Life" plates proposal for, among other reasons, promising to funnel funds from the purchase of the plates to "pregnancy care centers" or "crisis pregnancy centers." Planned Parenthood described the centers as "fake clinics" that promise comprehensive advice on pregnancy but push an anti-abortion agenda.

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