BlogHer - When "Pro-Life" Means "Terrorist" - Comments

Worse

Suzanne Reisman — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 10:14:09 -0500

I forgot that the children and families of clinic workers are also often threatened.

Suzanne, BlogHer Contributing Editor - Feminism & Gender
Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS)& Other Rants

I Don't Get It Either

A Elliot — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 20:17:42 -0500

I've don't get the thought process that it's OK to murder doctors who perform abortions and blow up clinics all in the name of being pro-life. Out here one of the pro-life groups bought property in the same parking lot as PP so that they can park their cars horizontally across all the spaces so that there's none for the women who want to visit the clinic.
A. Elliot

I support PP !!

super des — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 09:02:08 -0500

I posted a very pro-PP blog a few months ago. I wasn't there for an abortion, but I knew that other people were. I did what I had to do and I really enjoyed my experience. You can read the blog here:
the wonderful world of des: adventures in planned parenthood

PP workers need extra security

Denise — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 13:01:55 -0500

TW and I were just talking about the fact that the folks who work at PP in our sleepy little town have security systems installed on their homes - paid for by PP. I had no idea, was totally shocked - our PP doesn't even perform abortions for goodness sakes. It's true, in this little liberal college town those people aren't safe in their own homes - because they work to provide reproductive health services for women AND men.

Frightening.

~Denise
Fast Times @ Homeschool High & Flamingo House Happenings

AMEN!

Lyssann — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 12:46:46 -0500

As a former PP employee, thanks for passing on that petition. I'm not as up on this stuff as I used to be when I worked there. But I do have to say that the indignities that my co-worker (and sometimes me) had to suffer working at PP was ridiculous. I was always super-polite to all the "anti-choice" activists (I know the President of the prolife org in my state by name and sight, she brings a picture of her "woops" grandson to every hearing).

My coworker, while pregnant with her 2nd and very much wanted child (she was on bed rest for half of her pregnancy trying to ensure the health of her child), was sent postcards of her fetal development by a "anti-choice" activist who was convinced she got pregnant just to abort the fetus. She had to complain to the postmaster about her mailman putting nasty messages on her mail AND her neighbor told everyone in the neighborhood that she was performing abortions in her basement. It's ridiculous, rude and not good behavior.

Healthy Manifest

Switching Teams

Pam — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:43:00 -0500

When I worked on the Kerry campaign, I was honored to meet a guy who'd switched from being a Republican because of abortion rights. He'd come to this stance because the "pro-life" camp was insistent on women having babies, but didn't really want to have much to do with them once they were born. He couldn't reconcile those viewpoints over the long term.

Or, what Bridget said.

Nerd's Eye View

Bravo!

heivilinj — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:02:20 -0500

Well said.

Jim Heivilin

Sad but true

Bridget Magnus — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 10:34:38 -0500

It amazes me that people who claim to be "pro-life" seem to only respect the lives of the unborn, with no thought to those of us who have made it outside the womb. They have failed to expel the internal element that thinks it is ok to enforce their opinion through violence, vandalism, and murder. They have failed to support programs that would keep kids alive and healthy once they are actually born. Some of them even support the death penalty!

It is clear, when you consider the actual so-called "pro-life" position -- particularly with regard to the prevention of unwanted pregnancies that cause women to seek abortions in the first place -- that the more accurate descriptor is "anti-sex." Real "pro-life" people would have views much closer to yours.

When "Pro-Life" Means "Terrorist"

Suzanne Reisman — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 08:53:26 -0500

A few months ago, I was interviewed for a documentary on abortion directed by Bruce Isacson (you know, "Jaffe" in Outbreak? No? Neither did I…). At one point during a break, one of the crew mentioned that they have had a significantly more challenging time finding pro-choice people to participate in the project.

"Perhaps," I suggested," it is because they are afraid to since the so-called 'pro-life' side likes to threaten to kill us."

You think I am overreacting? Let's go by the numbers. How many pro-choice people have assassinated anti-choice organizers? I could not think of any offhand, and a Google search offers none. How many actual human beings – living and breathing, with family and friends who love them and value them – have been killed by so-called "pro-lifers?" Well, Dr. Bernard Slepian was killed in his kitchen upon return from synagogue by a life-saving sniper. Dr. David Gunn was shot and killed in the parking lot of the clinic he worked in. Religious Tolerance counts 24 murders and attempted murders by "pro-life" folks from 1993-2004. Almost 150 bombings, arsons, or attempted bombings or arsons took place against clinics, many with people inside. Further, 11,449 incidents with hate mail, harassing phone calls, bomb threats, and other terrorist tactics have been employed by "pro-life" advocates.

Which brings me to the tragedy currently taking place today in Aurora, IL. Emily Lockwood from Planned Parenthood reports:

As you may have heard, the Planned Parenthood clinic in Aurora, Illinois has become ground zero in the fight for women's access to reproductive health care. The Planned Parenthood clinic in Aurora was just built and is the largest PP clinic in the country which makes it the #1 target for anti-choice groups. Anti-choice groups have sent thousands of protesters to the clinic -- more people are protesting this clinic than we've seen for a long time, and their goal is to stop the clinic from opening. To be honest, it's going to take all of our efforts to open this clinic, and we're trying to rally with national support. The anti-choice bloggers are all over this, and I'm hoping we can get the pro-Planned Parenthood message out there quickly so that women in Aurora and across the country know they are safe and welcome at our clinics.

What people can do to stand with Planned Parenthood:

>> Ribbon campaign: We are asking Planned Parenthood supporters across the country stand with us by filling out a form to have a ribbon in their name tied outside the clinic in Aurora.
http://www.ppaction.org/campaign/aurora1/b0809htr08

>> Donate to keep our doors open:
https://secure.ga0.org/02/aurora1/b0809htr08

Quick points about Aurora and the protests:
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/news-articles-press/politics-policy-iss...

>> On August 25, hundreds of anti-choice extremists picketed near the site of the Planned Parenthood clinic as part of a "40-day prayer vigil" to protest the opening.

>> Aurora is home to some of the most radical anti-abortion organizers. Despite the attacks on Planned Parenthood from these extremists, Planned Parenthood of Chicago is determined to bring reproductive health care to a community that is lacking access to services like contraception, disease prevention, and sex education.

>> At the helm of the campaign is Joe Scheidler, founder of the Pro-Life Action League. Scheidler made his name in 1980’s when he called for the “year of pain and fear” for reproductive health care providers and patients. He as been quoted as saying: “For instance, several years ago we tracked down a twelve-year-old girl who was going to have an abortion so that we could talk her out of it. Talking a woman out of having an abortion is not news. But tracking her down by using a private detective is" and has vowed to stop abortion “by any means necessary.”

>> Aurora is a largely Hispanic and working class community, and Planned Parenthood saw a growing health care need: Illinois ranked seventh-highest in 2005 for chlamydia rates and 11th-highest for gonorrhea, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Guttmacher Institute reports that among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Illinois ranks 46th in the availability of contraceptive services and supplies. In Illinois, 1,558,620 women are in need of contraceptive services and supplies.

>> As in communities across the country, Planned Parenthood is stepping up to help Aurora’s families, which need health care access desperately like so many Americans. We saw this in South Dakota last year and now we’ve opened health center in the backyard of one of the most extreme leaders of the anti-choice movement. In a time when sex scandals dominate headlines, groups like us who are promoting safe and safer sex are under increased attack.

Sensible individuals all around the country are also acknowledging how little harassing women has to do with "saving lives." Erin at Sense and Epistemology wrote:

While I acknowledge that Pro-Life supporters have the undeniable right to protest in front of the Planned Parenthood site, I also refuse to support the blatant harassment that many Pro-Life supporters chose to dole out on the clinic's patients. Making a decision as difficult and emotionally draining as terminating a pregnancy does not need to be punctuated by cries of "Murderer" or chants of "Keep abortion out of Aurora." The only things that stopping Planned Parenthood will keep out of Aurora are the options of safe abortions and reasonable women's health care.

The protesters in Aurora have filed a lawsuit against Aurora's police department for trying to interfere with their protests. They have also requested permission to picket outside of clinic worker's homes. Since when has civil liberties included stalking your opposition?

The Curvature reports that anti-choicers are "scandalized" that permits for the facility were issued under the name Gemini Health Center, not Planned Parenthood:

You know, it seems pretty obvious to me. If this is the current reaction, imagine how long construction would have taken with a sign out front that said “Planned Parenthood.” Protesters would have tried to block workers and the site, tried to boycott the company that did the building, and made an even bigger mess at the city council, including trying to take Planned Parenthood to court over bullshit permit and building regulations, purposely trying to slow down construction with absolutely no basis. They’ve done it all before.

And to the worker who originally “figured out” that the building was going to be a facility that provides abortions, I have to say that the bullet-proof windows say a lot more about you and your buddies in Operation Rescue than it does about the facility. Am I the only one who sees the irony of Planned Parenthood getting found out by a guy who noticed the bullet-proof windows, when people like him are the reason that the bullet-proof windows are needed in the first place?

The thing is, these attacks aren’t going to stop… I refuse to believe that the leaders of this “movement” are unaware of the violence they can incite. That means it’s either purposeful, or they just don’t care.

Of course, not all anti-choice activists are the violent murders their leaders tend to accuse pro-choice activists of being. On the other hand, I don't see a terrific amount of outcry from them pointing out that if killing unborn fetuses are wrong, it is also wrong to kill birthed, living, breathing, functioning people. I also don't tend to see a lot of action on issues that would really save lives, so here are a few ideas I can give – free of charge! – to people who care about saving children's lives:

1. State Children's Health Insurance Programs: My pro-life loving friends are currently attempting to deny many uninsured children potentially life saving health insurance. (See Morra Aaron's wonderful post for more information.)

2. Defend families against foreclosure in the subprime mortgage meltdown and demand increased investments in affordable housing. One of the largest groups of people at risk are families headed by single women. Those women didn't have abortions, so the "pro-life" movement should be doing all they can to help those kids. The Committee on Temporary Shelter notes that homelessness "means much more than not having a home-the displacement strains virtually every aspect of family life, damaging the physical and emotional health of family members, interfering with children's education and development, and frequently resulting in the separation of family members." Don't believe them? Read the Complain Jane, the thoughtful blog of a woman who works at a family homeless shelter in Rhode Island to see what happens to homeless kids.

3. Control the flow of guns. I know, I know: guns don't kill people; people kill people. Except that Bob Herbert reported in The New York Times that people have managed to use guns to kill 34 school children since the beginning of last school year. Not only are the effects on those killed devastating, but the impact on the kids who survive their young friends' death are heart-rending.

This is a full circle, as Aurora is not far from Chicago and instead of wasting their time outside a Planned Parenthood, imagine all the good that those protesters might do if they actually put their efforts into helping kids live healthy, productive lives instead of killing adults or terrorizing women. You can call me a murdered because I support women's rights to abortion, but more importantly, I support the lives of kids once they are actually born. And that means that I am pro-life.

Suzanne also blogs at Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS) & Other Rants