Anti-Stupak Advocators
With a Saturday session of the Senate, a vote on the health care bill is planned for 8 p.m. tonight. Will Stupak pass? If so, this will be a step backwards on health care reform.
Planned Parenthood is leading the anti-Stupak movement with their “Pass Health Care Reform! Stop Stupak!” campaign. Supporters are encouraged to sign an online petition addressed to President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Reid, and Speaker Pelosi. The message states: “Women must be able to purchase private or public health insurance that offers comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion care.”
Female reproductive health coverage should not be banned from private and public insurance plans. This will affect millions of women who already have abortion coverage.
The Students Stop Stupak blog, created by Harvard student activists was created to “ensure that the Stupak amendment doesn’t end up in the final health care bill” and “mobilize college students at Harvard and beyond to start a movement advocating for women’s health care, reproductive rights, etc.”
I commend these students for organizing this group. Our generation is always criticized for not caring. Well, stopping Stupak is an issue that everyone should care about. We cannot allow the status quo to change on abortion coverage.
A good line on the Students Stop Stupak blog is “women’s health care is health care.” Women’s health care coverage in a government plan is just as important, even if that includes abortion. Reproductive health services are a natural health care need to women. Women should not be denied sufficient coverage because of the power of the Catholic Bishops in the House.
Anti-Stupak activism is critical. Please sign the Planned Parenthood petition and visit the Students Stop Stupak website to show your support or follow them on twitter.
Anti-Abortion Movement Gains Momentum
Recently, a dozen anti-abortion supporters were arrested for protesting outside of Nancy Pelosi’s office. Those arrested were the followers of Randall Terry and Father Norman Weslin, who are prominent anti-choice activists.
Today, one protester outside the Capitol targeted President Obama as a “fascist” that “will force Americans to pay for abortions and for government-provided health care.” This protester was from the group Insurrecta Nex, which follows Terry, who is described as a “militant anti-abortion leader.”
This is not true! First of all, there will be no government dollars going towards abortion and Americans will not be paying more for a public option. The public option will be there, but that does not mean you have to give up your existing coverage.
Also, government measures like Medicaid and Medicare are existing programs that have taken American tax dollars. This is not a new concept.
In the blog I am Emily X, the staff of Planned Parenthood recounted the 40 days of protests by the 40 Days for Life campaign. On the 40th day there were 1,034 protesters spotted outside of Planned Parenthood facilities nationally. Planned Parenthood supporters raised $56,048 against the 40 day protest movement.
Anti-abortionists are making health care reform a negative thing. The point of reforming the health care system is providing health insurance to more people, and that health insurance should cover abortion just like existing private insurance plans.
Stunting Abortion Coverage in Stupak Amendment
Today’s health care reform vote in the House was not good news for pro-choice supporters. There was a last-minute abortion compromise known as the Stupak Amendment, which guarantees that no federal dollars will be used towards abortion coverage.
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops support the amendment that specifies that there will be no abortion coverage in the government insurance plan and this could also go as far as applying to private insurance plans that already cover abortion.
According to Planned Parenthood, “If the bishops and their anti-choice partners in the House succeed, they’ll permanently alter health care in America, even taking away benefits from women that they have today. The bishops want to effectively eliminate abortion coverage in both private plans and the public option.”
This is a serious halt on reforming health care with conservatives stunting existing abortion coverage. The U.S. should not be moving backwards on female health care coverage when the health care bill seeks to improve the current system.
Planned Parenthood is strongly advocating for people not to let this happen, by calling local representatives and tweeting the news on PPact. Please visit the Planned Parenthood Action Center to find out more about the pro-choice campaign.
40 Days: An Anti-Abortion Recipe
Planned Parenthood clinics across the nation have seen anti-choice protesters in high volumes due to the 40 Days for Life campaign. This organization sees abortion as “evil,” and their mission is to use protest, prayer and fasting, and constant vigil to put an end to abortions.
The campaign uses the number 40 as symbolism for the 40 days of rain God brought to Noah and Moses’ 40 days on the mountain. The group wants to rid the world of abortion in 40 days, which is promoted in this campaign video.
The message of closing Planned Parenthood facilities is even more promoted on their website that applauds the closing of a Montana clinic, as an answer to their prayers from God.
They have caused quite a stir and Planned Parenthood has created a blog, I am Emily X, in response. Planned Parenthood workers and activists report the experiences of patients who have seen protesters at clinics across America.
One blog post discusses the vulnerability of a patient at an Idaho clinic, who called Planned Parenthood very upset by yelling protesters. As a patient, you are going to Planned Parenthood to receive care that you that you might already feel worried about and to have someone harassing you outside of a facility would make you even more uncomfortable.
In a post from Washington, a patient told a Planned Parenthood staffer, “I would never protest at their church, never.” The staffer said she didn’t identify Planned Parenthood as a “church,” but what the patient had said really struck her. Planned Parenthood is an organization that has the faith and value of providing reproductive rights to women.
Everyone has the right to free speech, but when a woman is labeled as “good” or “evil” for going to Planned Parenthood that is not justified. That is only speculation. A female patient could be going to Planned Parenthood to get a pregnancy test, find out her options, and not to get an abortion.
Medi-Gal 