McHenry County Citizens For Choice

Cristina Page turns her typical humor and eloquence to the ‘pro-life’ movement’s latest lamebrain antics: would you believe they’re trying to start a “Protest The Pill Day?”
“On June 7th, the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that gave married people the right to use contraception, the American Life League, along with Pro-Life Wisconsin and Pharmacists for Life International Associate groups want you to join them in protesting in front of facilities that distribute birth control products. The national day against contraception, Protest the Pill Day ‘08: The Pill Kills Babies, was started to convince the American people of a simple and imaginative idea: attempting to prevent abortion is abortion too. These arguments have been confounded by diabolical scientists and experts who insistently point out there’s no evidence to support that the birth control pill works the way these groups claim. As we all know, however, if ideology waited for science to prove scientific points, our ancestors would have never have spent all those years wandering the then-flat earth.”

Read the article in its entirety at RHRealityCheck.org.

Who’d have thought that we’d prevail in Virginia? Still and all, a federal appeals court ruled today that a Virginia law banning late-term abortion is still unconstitutional, despite a similar federal ban being upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. As usual, the lone reactionary holdout in the 2-1 vote was a Bush appointee, Judge Paul V. Niemeyer.

You can read the article in its entirety at CNN.com.

Amie Newman follows up on a post earlier in the week with news on the anti-contraception battle to destroy Title X:

“These desperate attempts are about ensuring that women and families live according to the agenda and under the will of terrified extremists. It’s not about abortion or contraception, sex or sexuality. It’s about fear. Fear that a society that allows for free will and encourages personal responsibility coupled with a healthy dose of “love and watch out for thy brother and sister” ultimately brings about justice and equality. And with justice and equality comes freedom - we wouldn’t want people to think and behave freely would we?”

Read the article in its entirety at RHRealityCheck.org.

Amie Newman points out how important it is to keep an eye on the anti-choice activists who continue to be placed in positions of power by the soon-to-be-removed Bush administration:

“The Family Research Council (FRC) is a savvy bunch.

The FRC, as a reminder, has apparently decided to act on their contention that federal contraception funding (Title X program) is too connected to centers that also provide abortion (because we all know how silly it is for a woman who has received an abortion to be given access to birth control afterwards or for women to be able to receive all or most of their reproductive health care in one place).

(But) Who oversees the above mentioned Title X program? Why, it’s Susan Orr. And who is Susan Orr? Dr. Orr is a former top official with the Family Research Council, the very same organization that is now petitioning to severely impair family planning access for low-income women and men in this country.”

Read the article - and learn how you can help stop the fanatics- at RHRealityCheck.org.

Alicia Meulensteen points out the link between access to safe, legal abortion and maternal mortality in this thoughtful article.

“Reducing maternal deaths from unsafe abortion is one of the most straight-forward public health problems to remedy. It requires increases in access to safe abortion and contraceptives. It is well-documented that countries with the lowest rates of abortion are those with the greatest access to legal abortion services and contraceptives. According to the Guttmacher Institute, Belguim, where abortion is legal and accessible, has an abortion rate of 7 per 100,000 women. Contrast this to Peru, where the procedure is illegal, and the rate skyrockets to 56 per 100,000. Despite the evidence, reproductive health targets were not initially included in the MDGs. These targets came late to the process in 2006 — almost half way to the end date of the campaign — and were added under the goal of reducing maternal mortality only after significant pressure from UN member states, including members of the EU and several developing nations such as Cambodia, Cuba, Madagascar, and Nigeria.”

Read the article in its entirety at RHRealitycheck.org.

Scott Swenson takes issue with Bill Donohue’s routine media defamation of anyone professing ideas contrary to his own.
“In an election year in which three presidential candidates force voters to deal with real bigotry, in the forms of misogyny, racism and ageism, Americans are looking within their hearts, facing generational fears, seeking a less divisive way to discuss issues on which we disagree. More often than not, mainstream media is no help — over-simplifying issues, over-emphasizing demographics, or worse, stoking the flames of hate with talking heads that shed no light but bring plenty of heat, contributing to division not healing. Old ways die hard.”

Read the article in its entirety at RHRealityCheck,org.

Veronica Arreola reports on the new allies joining the fight for your rights here in Illinois!

“The RJAA would ensure that no matter what an individual’s unique social and economic circumstances happen to be, each one of us has the right to make personal decisions about our bodies, our health care, and our reproduction without government interference. This includes access to funding for pregnancy and abortion services. It would also ensure that each individual has accurate information and access to a full range of reproductive health services including pre-natal care, access to adoption services and the ability to safely terminate a pregnancy. Gaylon Alcaraz, Executive Director of the Chicago Abortion Fund, puts the importance of this bill to the women CAF serves this way: “This is a true opportunity to give women full control over their reproductive health, birth control options with access and a way to pay for it. It would give them some true freedom.”

Read the article in its entirety at RHRealityCheck.org.

Interviewed by ABC News, the co-chairwoman of the Republican Majority for Choice calls the current GOP anti-abortion platform plank, which supports a nationwide constitutional ban on abortions with no exceptions - even for rape, incest, and the life of the mother - ”sick” and “inhumane.”

Although it is within John McCain’s power to change the plank (he supported a change in 2000 and 2007), co-chairman of McCain’s Justice Advisory Committee Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) states that he does not foresee such a change this year.

The GOP platform committee meets the week before the GOP convention in early September.

Read ABC News coverage of this story at abcnews.go.com.

The Guardian reports that survival rates for babies born before 24 weeks are extremely low and getting no better in spite of medical advances, according to an authoritative study which was published on May 9.

Read the article in its entirety at guardian.co.uk.

Five MCCC activists attended a meeting featuring Cristina Page as keynote speaker on Monday, May 5. Her message is one the pro-choice community needs to shout out. Her blog and her book HOW THE PRO-CHOICE MOVEMENT SAVED AMERICA should be on everyone’s bookshelf.