On Feb. 2, the Mississippi State House of Representatives passed a bill proposing an abortion ban on fetuses 15 weeks or older. The abortion bill received overwhelming support, with a vote of 79-31, in accordance with a handful of Democratic supporters in a Republican-dominated House. If the bill passes through the Senate and Governor, Mississippi will have the most pro-life laws on record and will be tied with North Carolina for the earliest ban.

The bill is projected to have widespread effects as state records indicate that as many as “200 abortions a year are performed on women 15 to 20 week pregnant.”

The passing of the bill has ignited a firestorm of debates. Although the bill’s exceptions include when a woman’s life is endangered or if the fetus has an abnormality, many have spoken out concerning the bill’s hypocrisy. Gulfport Democrat Representative Sonya Williams-Barnes says that the bill is “just another fancy way of telling a woman what to do with her body and when to do it” and that anti-abortion advocates neglect the issues of female and child well-being in the future. Other inquiries linger around whether or not Mississippi really cares for the children, “given the way [it] treats the born children” states Vicksburg Democrat Oscar Denton.

Echoing agreements additionally point to a group called Satanic Temple challenging Missouri’s abortion laws as violation on behalf of a woman identified as “Mary Doe’s” religious beliefs. Jex Blackmore, a spokesperson for Satanic Temple, conveyed that Doe was allegedly punished for her disparate beliefs and consequently forced to wait 72 hours prior to having an abortion in 2015. Such “religious indoctrination” elevates one viewpoint at the expense of the other, which Blackmore believes is a violation of the Establishment Clause in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

However, pro-life advocates defend their stance by outlining their primary goal as preventing women from being “adversely affected” by the causes and consequences of abortion. Braxton Republican and Baptist minister Andy Gipson states that “women deserve real health care, not some fake health care that involves the destruction of human life and a woman’s health.” Brookhaven Republican Representative Becky Currie supports this viewpoint as she believes that the bill’s appropriateness stems from the fact that women are fully aware of their pregnancy even before it reaches 15 weeks.

In spite of the controversy Mississippi’s proposed abortion ban has stirred up, it still remains unclear whether or not the U.S. Supreme Court will advance the legislation.