" The amendment was rejected by 58 percent of voters in staunchly anti-abortion Mississippi, largely on fears like Mrs. Breland’s that hinged on subtleties of medical science. "

" Staver said he blames Americans United for Life (AUL) and the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) — two of the nation’s largest and most established anti-abortion groups — for an “impasse” in the movement that contributed to a loss at the polls. "

So almost half of Mississippi voters (45%) agreed that zygotes and blastocysts should be legal persons.

" Although the “personhood” amendment isn’t explicitly about abortion, much of the discussion led to that issue. Some cited Christian beliefs and the need to protect the life of the unborn. Others said the beliefs of some shouldn’t be inflicted on all and that the government shouldn’t tell women what to do with their bodies. "

one initiative: " Define a person "from the point of fertilization, cloning or equivalent. "

" Zastrow said Amendment 26, also known as the “Personhood Amendment,” defines the word person “as a human being at fertilization.” The amendment will be on the Mississippi ballot this fall. “It doesn’t matter if it’s natural creation or in a lab such as stem cell research,” he said.

" Zastrow and others walked along Highway 15 North beginning near Ward’s, displaying signs with messages such as “Outlaw all abortions” with a graphic photo of an aborted baby. Other signs used Biblical references such as Exodus 20:13, “God Says: ‘Thou Shalt Not Murder.’” "

" Mississippians will vote on the proposed constitutional amendment this November, which seeks to redefine the beginning of a person’s life as the moment of fertilization as a way of challenging a women’s right to have an abortion as set forth by Roe v. Wade, according to the Personhood Mississippi website. "

" Back in 2008, the American Life League began pushing “Personhood Amendments” to become an integral part of the anti-choice movement; however, many Religious Right groups traditionally resisted “Personhood Amendments” because of their radical nature and tremendous unpopularity. Anti-choice groups in Colorado such as National Right to Life, Americans United for Life, Colorado Citizens for Life, and the Colorado Eagle Forum refused to support the “Personhood Amendment.” "

" Now, “Personhood Amendment” proponents will try their luck in Mississippi, which already has strict anti-choice laws, and they are receiving significant publicity and support from a leading Religious Right group: the American Family Association, which is based in Mississippi. "