Russell Moore decries "Culture of Death" as Obama and Clinton celebrate 100 years of Planned Parenthood

Jardine Malado Thursday, October 20, 2016

Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, speaks on stage at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards where she receives an award, in the Manhattan borough of New York November 9, 2015. | REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

As U.S. President Barack Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton celebrate the 100th anniversary of Planned Parenthood's founding, the pro-life community grieved over the lives that had been lost to abortion.

Planned Parenthood, which was founded by eugenicist Margaret Sanger in 1916, performs over 320,000 abortions a year and receives $550 million annual funding through government grants and reimbursements.

Russell Moore, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), said that the anniversary should "should be an occasion for the church to grieve."

"For a century, Planned Parenthood has been a force for the culture of death, beginning with its start as a racist, social Darwinist institution," Moore told Baptist Press. "It has been exposed even further in recent years as a trafficker of human bodies for financial gain," he continued.

"Though the pro-life movement has made some remarkable gains, this landmark for the abortion lobby's biggest institution is a reminder of how far we still have to go for human dignity," he added.

Both Obama and Clinton congratulated the organization and expressed their wishes that it would continue to operate for another hundred years.

"For a century, Planned Parenthood has made it possible for women to determine their own lives. Here's to another #100YearsStrong," Obama tweeted.

"Planned Parenthood, congratulations on your first 100 years. And here's to 100 more," said Clinton in a video released by her campaign on Oct. 16.

Pro-life organizations have banded together to launch a campaign called #100YearsOfAbuse to counter the celebration and reveal Planned Parenthood's practices. The pro-life groups that joined the coalition include Alliance Defending Freedom, Susan B. Anthony List, Americans United for Life, and the Family Research Council.

In 2015, a series of secretly recorded videos were released showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sales of fetal tissue.

Following the scandal, Congress approved a bill that would cut Planned Parenthood's funding by 90 percent but it was vetoed by Obama in January. The attempt to override the veto was unsuccessful.

It has been revealed that the abortion provider also receives donations from corporations such as Adobe, American Express, Avon, ExxonMobil, PepsiCo, Starbucks, Unilever and 30 others.