Different year, but the same story.

My apologies for taking almost a year to update this blog. But with state legislators only actually working a few months a year (lucky dogs), not a whole lot happens in the summer and fall.

So here we are, 2012, and just like last year, legislatures around the U.S. are introducing beaucoup anti-choice measures. My home state of Virginia is no exception.

So far, there have been 8 or so anti-choice bills introduced in Virginia. There are those that require mandatory ultrasounds before an abortion, a bill that gives personhood status to fertilized eggs (thus banning all abortion and some forms of birth control), a bill banning abortion at or after 20 weeks gestation (except in cases of rape, incest, or life of the mother), a bill to repeal the state's Medicaid funding for low-income women who experience a pregnancy with a fetal anomaly, and a bill to ban insurance companies participating in the yet-to-be-formed insurance exchange from covering abortion.

You can read more about the nationwide war on reproductive rights here.

Each and every one of these proposed laws is heartless, cruel, and completely unneccesary. Will any of these bills create jobs? Will any of them help to pull the lower and middle-class families out of their financial difficulties? Will any of these bills help with the housing crisis?? No, no, and NO!!

I urge everyone reading this to contact your state legislators and urge them to focus their efforts on issues that really impact their constituents--jobs, housing, the economy, etc. These right-wing attacks on women's reproductive health are merely a distraction. These legislators don't have an answer for how to help the jobless and those struggling financially, so they are instead focusing on something they think they CAN control--women's bodies. And they are using propaganda like television ads during the Superbowl to try to gain momentum and support.

If you are pro-choice, please get involved. Exercise your right as a citizen and let your voice be heard. E-mail or call your legislators and let them know that you are pro-choice and you vote.

Speaking out against "late term abortion" bans

Several state legislatures held hearings this week concerning proposed bans on abortions after 20 weeks.

In Minnesota, Alicia Hemple shared her story of terminating her much-wanted pregnancy due to a diagnosis of Trisomy 18.

In Kansas, Tiffany Campbell shared her agonizing decision to terminate one twin due to Twin-to-Twin transfusion syndrome.

In Washington, D.C. last month at two separate press conferences with pro-choice legislators, two women courageously shared their stories of interrupting planned and wanted pregnancies due to severe fetal anomalies. Dana Weinstein shared the story of her baby girl who was diagnosed in utero with agenesis of the corpus callosum and polymicrogyria. Mary Vargas tearfully shared her story of interrupting her pregnancy of her baby boy due to Potters syndrome.

All of these women deserve to be commended for bravely sharing their personal and heartbreaking stories to fight against anti-choice attacks. I know from personal experience how difficult it is to share such a personal and painful story in front of a group of strangers, not to mention lawmakers. But in the end, the more women who speak out and share these controversial decisions, the less stigma society will place on them, and the more those anti-choice politicians will know that we won't lie down and roll over while they strip us of our rights.

The people 20-week abortion bans really impact

Danielle and Robb Deaver of Grand Island, Nebraska shared their story of being legally prevented from terminating their pregnancy with their baby who wasn't expected to survive due to underdeveloped lungs. After Danielle's water broke at 22 weeks, she was unable to replenish and sustain her amniotic fluid. Danielle and her husband then asked her physician if she could terminate the pregnancy--both to preserve her own health (by avoiding the risk of infection) and to prevent their unborn baby girl from suffering at birth due to the lack of fluid. Read the rest of their heartbreaking story here.

Dr. Carhart to open three new clinics

Nebraska doctor Leroy Carhart, who was a close friend and associate of Dr. George Tiller, has announced that he plans to open three new abortion clinics which will provide abortion services to women past 20 weeks gestation. A recent law passed by the Nebraska legislature prevents abortions past 20 weeks in that state.

The new clinics are slated to be opening soon in Indiana, Iowa, and in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, and will operate under the banner of the Carhart Centers forSexual and Reproductive Health.

This is great news for women who will be facing a poor prenatal diagnosis and considering termination. Right now, there are only a small handful of places, scattered around the United States, which will help a woman seeking an abortion past 24 weeks. Prenatal testing doesn't always allow a woman before that time to know with certainty that there is a major problem with the development of the fetus. This results in many women being forced to travel halfway across the country to obtain a legal and safe medical procedure, which she should have been able to access in her own community.

Thank goodness for doctors, like Leroy Carhart, who are willing to do whatever is necessary to ensure that women have easier access to a safe and legal procedure. As long as Mother Nature keeps creating babies with serious anomalies, and families can legally exercise their free will in deciding whether or not to bring these babies into the world, there will always be a need for pregnancy termination after 20 weeks. There's no reason to make it logistically impossible for these devastated families.

Edited to add: Starting Monday, December 6, 2010, Dr. Carhart will begin offering his services to women out of the Germantown Reproductive Health Services practice in Germantown, MD.

The Assassination of Dr. Tiller

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow narrates a new documentary investigating the assassination of Dr. George Tiller and the possible connections between his convicted killer, Scott Roeder, and extremist pro-life groups.
Three brave women, who were patients of Dr. Tiller, shared their stories for the documentary. All three went to Dr. Tiller because their babies were diagnosed with severe anomalies. I'd like to say thank you to those brave women for allowing us to here some of their stories and to feel some of their pain.

This man did what so many of us have dreamed about...

Below is a video of a heartbroken dad named Aaron Gouveia who confronted some protesters in front of an abortion clinic. He and his wife were there because their baby had been diagnosed with a severe fetal anomaly and they decided to interrupt the pregnancy. Listen as this courageous dad gives the clueless protesters a glimpse into his world...




And here is a blog post from Aaron on The Good Men Project.

Good for you, Dad!

Abortion on television

I read this article while waiting for my turn at the dentist's office this morning. It's about how more and more scripted television shows are adding storylines about abortion. The most fascinating part is that the episodes are not overly dramatized and aren't resulting in a deluge of hatemail to the producers of the shows.

Is abortion no longer too taboo for tv?