Remember Savita Halappanavar

Today marks three years since the death of Savita Halappanavar. Savita suffered health complications from a miscarriage at 17 weeks, presented to University Hospital Galway in Ireland for care, and was denied what would have been a life-saving abortion. Savita did not have to die. She was murdered by medical ineptitude, deadly and outdated abortion laws and moral outrage.

AbortionRightsRally

A Rally In Dublin In Memory Of Savita Halappanavar (2012) – William Murphy on Flickr

The New Republic published an article today called Let’s Just Say It: Women Matter More Than Fetuses Do. In the article Rebecca Traister talks about her own awareness of abortion as a crucial medical option during her two wanted pregnancies. She puts abortion alongside nuchal screening, amnio, and early Cesarean – that is, one of many tools that may need to come into play during a routine pregnancy. The article did not focus solely on “abortion as medical necessity” – this was simply the opening salvo. Continue reading “Remember Savita Halappanavar”

Remember Savita Halappanavar
{advertisement}

After Tiller after nearly three years

Last night I watched After Tiller for the first time ever. I know, I know…I just haven’t been in the right mindset to watch it before now. I was pretty sure that what I was going to see was compassionate doctors and heartbreaking stories of fetal anomalies and clinic/provider harassment. Hard to choose that over Parks and Rec, Lost Girl and rewatching Buffy and…

Anyway, that’s pretty much what After Tiller was, so for someone who’s familiar with abortion care there weren’t a lot of surprises. WE KNOW why people seek third trimester abortions. WE KNOW that doctors and clinics are subjects of harassment. WE KNOW that the doctors who do this work are caring and compassionate human beings.

But there were a couple of takeaways for me, someone who is familiar with the previous facts:

Continue reading “After Tiller after nearly three years”

After Tiller after nearly three years

Talking Points from Planned Parenthood

As a Planned Parenthood volunteer, I have been impressed with the communication coming out of the volunteer coordinator’s office about the recent attacks on the organization. They have sent several emails out to us with offers to provide information about the attacks and reassurance about this organization that we support with our time, money and efforts. They’re doing their due diligence even though most of us – and the mainstream media – are moving rapidly away from this embarrassingly incompetent and transparent attempt to discredit Planned Parenthood.

Continue reading “Talking Points from Planned Parenthood”

Talking Points from Planned Parenthood

Speaking at MVUUF this Sunday

I – along with my partner in abortion advocacy, Niki – have been invited to speak at the Minnesota Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship church this Sunday. According to their website, we’re actually doing a sermon!

Sermon

Well I’ll be.

As the sermon description implies, we’ll be talking about our experiences as clinic escorts and how to support access to abortion (although what happens on the sidewalk is not a picket line, and we escort for Whole Women’s Health, not Planned Parenthood…but close enough!) This is the second time that we’ll be doing this talk together; the first was for Minnesota Atheists and it appeared to be well received.

So I guess this weekend I’ll be putting on some Sunday finery and heading down to church to spread the good word. Whodathunk?

Speaking at MVUUF this Sunday

No You Can't Refuse Service

Hey everybodyyyyyy!

I was jumping online to do a blog post about this convention that I’m attending this weekend, but it has to wait because I have to tell you about This Other Thing That Is Really Awesome!

H/T to Niki for pointing me in the direction of Michael Stone’s article Appeals Court Rules Pharmacies Cannot Cite Religion To Deny Medication

In Washington state it is no longer legal for pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for emergency contraception based on the justification that to do so would violate their deeply held religious belief that slutty women should literally bear the consequences of their sluttiness. Well, a clarification: These pharmacists can refuse to fill prescriptions… as long as they are on duty with a coworker who acknowledges that women are sentient life forms capable of making medical decisions about their own bodies, and who will fill the prescriptions.

This is huge! Not just for reproductive rights, but for putting a slight damper on the creep (tidal wave) of religion into public life and government.

Stone cites a statement by The Washington, D.C.-based Beckett Fund for Religious Liberty: “The government has no business punishing citizens solely because of their religious beliefs.”

No. If you refuse to provide professional assistance to someone because they don’t share your political beliefs, then you are the one who is doing the punishing.

And thanks to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this kind of petty-minded punishment is not going to be tolerated. Pharmacists no longer get to decide that they know better than the doctors who prescribe emergency contraception and the people who are choosing to take it. They no longer get to use their professional status as an opportunity to prostelytize and pass moral judgments that have very real consequences to their clients. They no longer get to be the gatekeepers of this type of medical care.

You know, at least in Washington state.

{AD}

No You Can't Refuse Service

No You Can’t Refuse Service

Hey everybodyyyyyy!

I was jumping online to do a blog post about this convention that I’m attending this weekend, but it has to wait because I have to tell you about This Other Thing That Is Really Awesome!

H/T to Niki for pointing me in the direction of Michael Stone’s article Appeals Court Rules Pharmacies Cannot Cite Religion To Deny Medication

In Washington state it is no longer legal for pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for emergency contraception based on the justification that to do so would violate their deeply held religious belief that slutty women should literally bear the consequences of their sluttiness. Well, a clarification: These pharmacists can refuse to fill prescriptions… as long as they are on duty with a coworker who acknowledges that women are sentient life forms capable of making medical decisions about their own bodies, and who will fill the prescriptions.

This is huge! Not just for reproductive rights, but for putting a slight damper on the creep (tidal wave) of religion into public life and government.

Stone cites a statement by The Washington, D.C.-based Beckett Fund for Religious Liberty: “The government has no business punishing citizens solely because of their religious beliefs.”

No. If you refuse to provide professional assistance to someone because they don’t share your political beliefs, then you are the one who is doing the punishing.

And thanks to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this kind of petty-minded punishment is not going to be tolerated. Pharmacists no longer get to decide that they know better than the doctors who prescribe emergency contraception and the people who are choosing to take it. They no longer get to use their professional status as an opportunity to prostelytize and pass moral judgments that have very real consequences to their clients. They no longer get to be the gatekeepers of this type of medical care.

You know, at least in Washington state.

No You Can’t Refuse Service

You're f*ckin it up, Indiana

So I haven’t written about Purvi Patel yet. Or the spike in HIV cases. Or the RFRA. I think it’s party because I’ve been too numb and scared and bewildered and trying to grok what’s going on in Indiana. And across the country. Across my country. So let’s break up this overwhelming set of circumstances and take them in smaller bits. Today let’s talk about Purvi Patel.

For an explanation of who Purvi Patel is and the ordeal that she’s been put through, check out this article from The New York Times, Purvi Patel Could Be Just the Beginning.

Someone was just sentenced to 20 years in prison for aborting a fetus. This just happened in the United States of America, y’all. The first person in US history to be convicted of feticide for aborting her own pregnancy.

Continue reading “You're f*ckin it up, Indiana”

You're f*ckin it up, Indiana

You’re f*ckin it up, Indiana

So I haven’t written about Purvi Patel yet. Or the spike in HIV cases. Or the RFRA. I think it’s party because I’ve been too numb and scared and bewildered and trying to grok what’s going on in Indiana. And across the country. Across my country. So let’s break up this overwhelming set of circumstances and take them in smaller bits. Today let’s talk about Purvi Patel.

For an explanation of who Purvi Patel is and the ordeal that she’s been put through, check out this article from The New York Times, Purvi Patel Could Be Just the Beginning.

Someone was just sentenced to 20 years in prison for aborting a fetus. This just happened in the United States of America, y’all. The first person in US history to be convicted of feticide for aborting her own pregnancy.

Continue reading “You’re f*ckin it up, Indiana”

You’re f*ckin it up, Indiana

Pregnancy Doesn’t Have To Be A Crisis

I just spent the last twenty minutes digging through the website of a “pregnancy and family resource center” located here in the Twin Cities. The organization that I was reading about looks like they have a pretty decent program, focusing on providing prenatal care, helping with getting medical insurance, providing physical resources (cribs, clothes, diapers, food, etc.), support groups, referrals to mental health programs and housing programs, and life skills and job skills training. Because you know where this is going, dear reader, there was of course the conspicuous lack of “abortion” or “pregnancy termination” referral in the many services that the group offers. I finally found the language I was looking for in one of the testimonial videos in which they advertise that they offer prayer and talk about “women in crisis.” Continue reading “Pregnancy Doesn’t Have To Be A Crisis”

Pregnancy Doesn’t Have To Be A Crisis

Pregnancy Doesn't Have To Be A Crisis

I just spent the last twenty minutes digging through the website of a “pregnancy and family resource center” located here in the Twin Cities. The organization that I was reading about looks like they have a pretty decent program, focusing on providing prenatal care, helping with getting medical insurance, providing physical resources (cribs, clothes, diapers, food, etc.), support groups, referrals to mental health programs and housing programs, and life skills and job skills training. Because you know where this is going, dear reader, there was of course the conspicuous lack of “abortion” or “pregnancy termination” referral in the many services that the group offers. I finally found the language I was looking for in one of the testimonial videos in which they advertise that they offer prayer and talk about “women in crisis.” Continue reading “Pregnancy Doesn't Have To Be A Crisis”

Pregnancy Doesn't Have To Be A Crisis