Haywood Robinson, who spent 14 years performing abortions before becoming a committed campaigner against the practice, died of heart failure the last weekend of July 2026 at age 74, 40 Days For Life announced on August 2nd, 2026.

Shawn Carney, president, CEO, and co-founder of 40 Days For Life, said Robinson served as the organization’s director of medical affairs and education and was "one of those rare characters who forced people to sort of take a side" on abortion. Carney told the Daily Caller News Foundation that "one of Haywood’s legacies was that he forced the issue because he had done abortions."

Robinson emphasized that while politicians and media are often blamed for abortion, "for some reason, medicine got off the hook," Carney added. In 2024, Robinson told CatholicVote that some hospitals performed abortions "no more than 50 yards" from labor and delivery suites.

Robinson was also a founding board member of the Life Education And Resource Network (L.E.A.R.N.), described as the largest African-American evangelical pro-life ministry in the U.S.

According to 2019 data reported by Vox citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), black women accounted for 38.4% of U.S. abortions, compared to 33.4% for white women.

Carney also referenced James Talarico, the Democratic Senate nominee in Texas, who drew attention after a 2023 podcast resurfaced in which he expressed his "love" for transgender children.

40 Days For Life describes itself as "an internationally coordinated 40-day campaign that aims to end abortion locally through prayer and fasting, community outreach, and a peaceful all-day vigil in front of abortion businesses."

Sources