Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh reveals stance on abortion
The national debate around abortion has come to the college football community after Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh came out on the pro-life side.
Harbaugh and his wife, Sarah, spoke at the Plymouth Right to Life event, which raises money for pro-life charities in the state of Michigan.
“In God’s plan, each unborn human truly has a future filled with potential, talent, dreams and love,” Harbaugh said, via Detroit Catholic.
“I have living proof in my family, my children, and the many thousands that I’ve coached that the unborn are amazing gifts from God to make this world a better place. To me, the right choice is to have the courage to let the unborn be born.”
The abortion debate kicked into high gear in recent weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the former Roe v. Wade ruling, which guaranteed a federal right to abortion since 1973.
By overturning that case, the Court ruled that individual states have the right to legislate abortion for themselves, not at the national level.
The ruling was met with passionate reaction on both sides of the argument, with pro-life groups celebrating it, and pro-choice groups condemning the decision.
Jim Harbaugh led Michigan to its first College Football Playoff in 2021
USA Today Images
"I recognize one’s personal thinking regarding morality of a particular action may differ from their thinking on whether government should make that action illegal," Harbaugh said.
"There are many things one may hold to be immoral, but the government appropriately allows because of some greater good or personal or constitutional right.
“Ultimately, I don’t believe that is the case with abortion. Yes, there are conflicts between the legitimate rights of the mother and the rights of the unborn child. One resolution might involve incredible hardship for the mother, family, and society. Another results in the death of an unborn person."
Harbaugh has been public with his political stances in the past, citing his Catholic faith in various social justice initiatives, including his support for Colin Kaepernick, speaking on behalf of providing legal aid for the poor, and attending a protest against police brutality after the death of George Floyd.
Michigan went 12-2 last season, beating Ohio State for the first time in eight years, winning the Big Ten championship, and making the College Football Playoff.
The Wolverines lost in the Orange Bowl semifinal to eventual national champion Georgia.
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