The
IRCRC takes action! See what we have done in recent weeks:
- 7/17/2006—
Lafayette Journal & Courier publishes letter
to editor from IRCRC President about "choose life"
license plates (see at right)
- 1/20/2006—
Lafayette Journal & Courier publishes letter
to editor from IRCRC President marking "Roe"
anniversary. (4th one down)
- 2/1/2006—
Indianapolis Star publishes letter
to editor from IRCRC President opposing HB 1080 and
HB 1172.
Sign
the letter to our Indiana Senators encouraging them to show
support for family planning! (7/24/2006)
Members
and friends of IRCRC are sending a letter to Senators Bayh
and Lugar encouraging them to sign onto Senate Resolution
485, "A Resolution to Express the Sense of the Senate
Concerning the Value of Family PLanning for American Women."
To add your name, visit our booth at the Tippecanoe County
Fair now through July 28, or send us an e-mail with your name
and mailing address. Deadline for adding your name to the
letter: Sunday, August 20.
Learn
more about this bill:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=sr109-485
http://thomas.loc.gov
(Type "S. Res. 485" in the search box and click
"bill number.")
http://ppaction.org/campaign/birthcontrol/sk7dwk4ftnmje5?
Following is the text of the letter:
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To:
Senators Evan Bayh and Richard Lugar
As Indiana citizens we urge you to support the important
family planning resolution, S. Res. 485.
Family planning is embraced by religions across the
spectrum as a moral good, a responsible choice, and
a basic human right. The world's religions recognize
that family planning helps build strong families, protect
the health of women and children, reduce child and spousal
abuse, and prevent unwanted pregnancies.
Family planning is the mainstream moral choice. The
overwhelming majority of women and men use a modern
method of contraception. Also, research has proven that
access to family planning and birth control is the most
effective way to reduce abortions.
We are concerned that there is a growing movement in
this country to restrict or prohibit access to affordable
birth control. These developments have been especially
hard on low-income women, among whom unplanned pregnancy
rates have risen by nearly 30 percent.
By
supporting S. Res. 485 you will be helping to counter
a dangerous and immoral war on birth control while supporting
good health for women, men, and families. Thank you.
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Add
your name today!
7/16/06-7/20/07
Letter to the editor published in the Lafayette Journal
& Courier, 7/16/06 (also in Indianapolis Star
on 7/19 and Fort Wayne News-Sentinel on 7/20):
License
plate funds unworthy cause
Do the
new "Choose Life" license plates really support a "good cause"
as asserted by Bureau of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Joel
Silverman? The crisis pregnancy centers, which benefit from
these plates, do not exist to help women. Rather, their primary
purposes are to further the anti-choice agenda, prevent women
from obtaining abortions, and proselytize a particular religious
viewpoint.
A growing
number of women say they were deceived, harassed and pressured
at these centers. Many report being lured by a pretense that
abortion services were offered. Women report being given false
or incomplete information and being forced to listen to propaganda
representing one religious viewpoint.
The media
have begun to take notice, including The New York Times and
Indiana's WISH TV. The problem is so pervasive that federal
legislation has been proposed to stop deceptive advertising
by these centers (Women's Services Act HR 5052).
Ironically,
despite their anti-abortion agenda, these centers do very
little to reduce abortions. Research shows that the best way
to reduce abortions is through family planning services, contraception,
and comprehensive sexuality education. Few of these centers
provide contraception or family planning services.
The Indiana
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice believes that
women deserve complete and honest information. They should
be able to make reproductive health decisions that are consistent
with their personal faith beliefs. We are developing All Options
Clergy Counseling to provide women with the respect, compassion
and support they deserve.
In contrast,
the beneficiaries of the new license plates cause harm and
promote religious intolerance.
Kaye
McSpadden, president Indiana Religious Coalition for Reproductive
Choice Lafayette
Learn
more about crisis pregnancy centers!
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More
letters to the editor! Check out these letters recently
published in the Lafayette Journal & Courier:
7/27/2006
Common sense prevents pregnancies
I
worry about what kind of future the writers of recent
anti-choice letters seem to want for our state and nation.
It
sounds to me as if they want our country to be like
El Salvador, where abortion is totally criminalized.
There, women (including mothers) and medical professionals,
suspected of having or aiding in abortions, are thrown
into prison for decades. "Forensic vagina inspectors"
examine women whose claims of having had a miscarriage
are questioned. A reproductive police state like El
Salvador is not the future I want for my children and
grandchildren.
Rather,
I look to Europe, where countries such as Germany, France
and the Netherlands have some of the lowest abortion
rates in the world, even though abortion remains safe,
legal, and accessible. The big difference is the availability
of family planning services, affordable birth control,
and life-long comprehensive sex education.
These
countries have shown that the best way to bring down
the abortion rate is not to criminalize it, but rather
to work for common sense measures that help women prevent
unintended pregnancies. Planned Parenthood of Indiana
and the Indiana Religious Coalition for Reproductive
Choice support measures that help build healthy families
and preserve personal freedom and privacy.
Learn
more at our booth at the Tippecanoe County Fair or at
www.ppin.org or www.ircrc.org. Raymond Cubberley, co-chairman,
Lafayette Region Planned Parenthood of Indiana Capital
and Endowment Campaign, West Lafayette
7/26/2006
Positive
response to reproductive rights
While attending the Tippecanoe County Fair on Sunday,
it was gratifying to see that so many people of faith
are responding positively to the information being disseminated
by the Indiana Coalition for Reproductive Rights.
I am a member of that organization. I support the programs
of IRCRC because it is the intent of this organization
to provide appropriate and accurate education for our
young people.
We
must all be alert to actions that would repeal Roe v.
Wade. Such an action would be devastating not only for
women's health, but also for the principle of religious
freedom.
Ruth
Ann Ferris
West Lafayette |
3/12/2006
Stay vigilant-- we may need to act quickly on Monday or Tuesday!
On
Wednesday, 3/8/06, the Indiana House of Representatives dissented
to the changes made to HB 1080 in the Senate. Now, both HB
1080 and HB 1172 are being finalized in conference committee.
HB 1080 could close Indiana's abortion clinics if the House
version is restored. The Senate version was amended to ensure
patient safety, respect the authority of the state department
of health, and still allow abortion providers enough flexibility
to continue services. HB 1172 could force doctors to give
false, misleading, politically motivated information to patients
seeking abortion.
At
this point, conference committee reports have not been filed
on either bill. At this point, we do not know what the final
versions of these bills will be. These issues--indeed, the
remaining slate of bills, including "Major Moves"--must be
resolved by the close of the legislative session, which is
midnight on Tuesday, 3/14/06. Legislators have gone home for
the weekend; when they return Monday morning, they are in
for a long and intense final two days of session. After the
committee reports are filed, the bills will go back to the
House and Senate for another, final floor vote.
We
ask all IRCRC friends and members to stand by and keep a close
watch on your email inbox Monday and Tuesday. As soon as the
reports are filed, if we are able, we will ask you once more
to contact your Senator and Representative on HB 1080 and
HB 1172.
2/22/2006
Great news about HB 1080 & 1172 -- IRCRC made a difference!
Today, the Senate Health & Provider Services
Committee stripped all the truly atrocious parts out of the
two bills we've been fighting:
HB
1080, which would have closed Indiana's abortion clinics,
has been amended to ensure safety, respect the authority of
the State Department of Health, and allow facilities enough
flexibility to continue providing services. As amended, the
bill now calls for facilities to conform to expected physical
standards and requires yearly inspections.
HB
1172 has been amended to remove statements about fetal pain
which were not supported by medical science. Also, the statement
regarding the beginning of life has been removed. The bill
still requires that information that is already required to
be given to patients now be given in writing, and it also
adds more information on adoption.
While
this is a major positive development, we must stay vigilant.
Within the next few days, the bills will likely go before
the full Senate where they will probably pass. After that,
they will likely go to a conference committee made up of just
four legislators. The conference
committee can choose to finalize either the House version
of the bills (bad idea), the Senate version of the bills (good
idea), or compromise between the two (who knows?).
IRCRC
will continue to stay abreast of developments through
our proud participation in HAPA, the Health Access and Privacy
Alliance, and we will keep you informed. In the meantime,
thanks to all of you for speaking up and speaking out.
Your phone calls, letters, and e-mail messages MADE A DIFFERENCE.
You have helped to show legislators that people of faith can
be pro-choice. You have helped them to understand that there
is a wide diversity within the religious community on issues
relating to reproductive freedom. And you have helped broadcast
the message that legislators should not try to impose their
religious beliefs upon the citizens of the state.
Thanks
for keeping the faith for choice!
Jan.
31, 2006 —Alito Confirmation Threatens Women’s Safety
and Health; RCRC Calls on People of Faith to Demand Roe Be
Upheld
Statement of Rev. Carlton W. Veazey President
and CEO, Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice:
Today’s
U.S. Senate vote to confirm Judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme
Court is a setback for all Americans. Alito’s appointment
will dramatically shift the court to the right and threaten
basic guarantees that have been essential to American rights
and freedoms. Protections for women’s dignity and safety in
regards to reproductive healthcare decisions are in serious
jeopardy. Clergy who assisted women with crisis pregnancies
when abortion was illegal know that we cannot return to that
dangerous time of illegal abortion. We call on people of faith
to demand that Roe v. Wade be upheld. The Religious
Coalition for Reproductive Choice strongly opposed the nomination
of Judge Alito and thanks the 42 senators who voted against
confirmation. Despite heavy political pressure from the White
House, they took a stand for religious freedom and the right
of individuals to make private moral decisions. Women and
families may no longer be able to rely on the highest court
in the land to protect their wellbeing. People of faith must
now step forward and take action to protect a woman’s right
to make moral decisions about family planning.
Please
contact Senator
Evan Bayh and thank him for opposing the nomination of
Samuel Alito.
January
27, 2006—
Urgent
Alert: Contact Your State Representative Today!
At
last night's IRCRC session on legislative advocacy held at
the Lafayette YWCA, we learned from guest speakers Michael
McKillip and Lindsey Mintz about an alarming development that
had taken place earlier in the day in the Indiana legislature.
You may have also read about it in today's Indianapolis Star,
where it was featured as a front-page story. You may read
it online.
Here's what we learned. Yesterday, two horrific pieces of
legislation passed committee votes in the Indiana State House
of Representatives. In his presentation last night, Michael
said yesterday's committee session was "the most startling
and disturbing" experience of his seven years as a legislative
advocate.
As
members and friends of IRCRC, we must speak up about
these two bills. Both bills would harm women's health and
violate religious liberty. The issue of when a life begins
is fundamentally a religious and philosophical question. Different
religions and individual people of faith have various beliefs
on this topic. The IRCRC affirms the right of individuals
to make such decisions in keeping with their own personal
beliefs. Lawmakers do not have the right to impose one particular
religious belief upon everybody.
Please
contact your Representative TODAY and urge him/her to oppose
these bills. Talk to your friends, relatives, and neighbors,
and urge them to contact their Representative, too. It is
imperative that our legislators hear from us!
Following is a brief description of the two bills. To learn
more about the bills and to take action through a convenient
Planned Parenthood advocacy site, click on the link for each
of them:
HB
1080--an attempt at an end-run around the authority of
the state department of health and close all Indiana abortion
clinics. This would be a dangerous and alarming development
for the health of women and families of Indiana, and make
it impossible for many women to choose to terminate a pregnancy
if that is the best decision for them according to their personal
and faith beliefs.
HB
1172--would ignore the consensus of the medical community
and require abortion providers to tell women that life begins
at conception and that the fetus can feel pain, statements
that conflict with scientific and medical consensus. This
bill would require medical professionals to tell lies to their
patients, in a blatant attempt to influence their decision
about whether to terminate a pregnancy. The IRCRC believes
women deserve honesty, not lies. We believe women are capable
of making their own decisions about their reproductive health
without the intrusion of Indiana lawmakers who want to force
their own personal beliefs on others.
Act
now to stop both of these atrocious bills! These bills will
come before the full House for a vote within a few days. Your
representative needs to hear from you! You may also want to
consider calling. You may call the main number for the House
of Representatives and ask for your Representative. The numbers
are: 800-382-9841 and 317-232-9600
If
you are not sure who your Representative is, go to www.vote-smart.org
and enter your zip+4.
If
you live in the Lafayette area, complete contact information
for area Representatives is at the end of this message.
Whether
by e-mail or by phone, please speak out today, and thank you
for keeping the faith for choice!
LAFAYETTE
AREA STATE REPRESENTATIVES
Representative Sheila Klinker
D-Dist 27: Tippecanoe Co.
633 Kossuth St, Lafayette 47905-1444
(H) 765-742-1692, (S) 317-232-9822
E-mail: h27@in.gov
Representative
Joe Micon
D-Dist 26: Tippecanoe, Warren Counties
6806 N Armstrong Chapel Rd, W Lafayette 47906-8006
(H) 765-583-4300, (S) 317-232-9822, (B) 317-232-4567
E-mail: h26@in.gov
Representative
Tim Brown
R-Dist 41: Montgomery, Parke, Tipepcanoe Counties
PO Box 861, Crawfordsville IN 47933-0861
(H) 765-362-7024, (S) 317-234-3825
E-mail: h41@in.gov
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