Reproductive Freedom

From NARAL Pro-Choice America...

I’m writing you today to express my immeasurable shock and deep sadness over the murder of Dr. George Tiller in Wichita, Kansas.

On behalf of NARAL Pro-Choice America and our affiliates, our prayers and thoughts are with Dr. Tiller’s family and friends.

If you don’t know very much about his background, for almost two decades Dr. Tiller and those individuals who helped provide care to his patients have lived under intense harassment tinged with persistent threats of violence. Even under these adverse circumstances, Dr. Tiller never wavered in his commitment to providing abortion services and other reproductive health care to women and their families, often in the most difficult and heart-breaking circumstances.

Proposition 4 is another bad anti-choice proposal: parental notification, an automatic child abuse investigation if the young woman doesn't want to notify her parents and can't find a judge to approve. And if she is able to find a judge, the judge then has to declare her mature enough, and the judges have to make annual reports, county-by-county, on how many abortions are approved for young women each year.

Proposition 4 on the general election ballot is an initiative measure to amend the California State Constitution to impede a minor's ability to obtain an abortion, even in the case of rape or incest. This is all too familiar. Twice in the past three years, Californians have narrowly defeated two similar measures -- Propositions 73 in November, 2005 and 85 in November, 2006. But this time, the measure is in danger of passing. A poll (caution: .pdf file) conducted by the Field Research Corporation has it at Yes 49, No 41, with 10 percent undecided as of September 26th. All of this in a state that is 71% pro-choice.

Proposition 4 changes the California Constitution to prohibit abortion for minors caution -- large .pdf file -- until 48 hours after physician notifies the young woman’s parent or legal guardian. To make matters worse, it mandates reporting requirements, including reports from physicians regarding abortions on minors, and it authorizes civil damage awards against physicians for violations.

It gets worse for young women in potentially abusive situations. In this case, the physician would be allowed to skip the notification only if an equivalent notice has been delivered

... to an adult family member designated by the unemancipated minor and has made a written report of known or suspected child abuse concerning to unemancipated minor to to the appropriate law enforcement or public child protective agency. Such report shall be based on a minor's written statement that she fears physical, sexual, or severe emotional abuse from a parent who would otherwise be notified and that her fear is based on a pattern of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse of her exhibited by a parent. The physician shall also include the minor's statement with his or her report and shall also retain a copy of the statement and the report in the minor's medical records. The physician shall also include with the notice a letter informing the adult family member that a report of known or suspected child abuse has been made concerning the minor and identifying the agency to which the report was made. The minor shall be informed that the notice and the letter will be delivered to the adult family member she has designated.

Two stories and a link to info on Prop 4

Feds: Birth control equals abortion

On Nov. 2, 2006, Kat Kerlin reported in the RN&R that “Some anti-abortion groups are taking a stand not only against abortion, but also against contraception. … [M]any of them are now moving from the fringes into high-ranking governmental positions, where they’re making key decisions about reproductive health.”

If anyone had any doubts about this seemingly extreme prediction, the Bush administation is providing plenty of evidence. A draft regulation being circulated at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services would cut off federal funds to hospitals and states that try to compel medical providers to offer legal abortion services to women. But that’s not the key provision. The regulation then goes on to define abortion as “any of various procedures—including the prescription, dispensing and administration of any drug or the performance of any procedure or any other action—that results in the termination of the life of a human being in utero between conception and natural birth, whether before or after implantation.” Many commonly used birth control methods block implantation in addition to ovulation.

Sacramento Stonewall's Television Ad debuting this week

From NARAL...

Thanks to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, we may be one step closer to sending anti-choice judicial nominee Richard Honaker back to Wyoming without a lifetime judgeship.

Earlier this week, Sen. Feinstein chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on Honaker, one of President Bush’s most anti-choice judicial nominees to date.

Sen. Feinstein, a strong and independent pro-choice leader, put Richard Honaker’s anti-choice views into the spotlight. Among other things, Honaker admitted that his work as a Wyoming state legislator was in fact a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade and that he thinks Roe was wrongly decided.

Please thank Sen. Feinstein for asking tough questions and playing a critical role in exposing Honaker’s anti-choice views.