Rolling Back Women's Rights

[jefferson_dem]

Dispensing with legislative niceties like holding hearings or full and open debate, President Bush and the Republican Congress have used the cover of a must-pass spending bill to mount a disgraceful sneak attack on women's health and freedom.

Tucked into the $388 billion budget measure just approved by the House and Senate is a sweeping provision that has nothing to do with the task Congress had at hand - providing money for the government. In essence, it tells health care companies, hospitals and insurance companies they are free to ignore Roe v. Wade and state and local laws and regulations currently on the books to make certain that women's access to reproductive health services includes access to abortion.

It remains to be seen exactly how the measure will work in practice. But the intention, plainly, is to curtail further already dwindling access to abortion and even to counseling that mentions abortion as a legal option. It denies federal financing to government agencies that "discriminate" against health care providers who choose for any reason to disregard state mandates to offer abortion-related services. This represents a vast expansion of the "conscience protection" that federal law currently gives to individual doctors who do not want to undergo abortion training.

The affront to women's rights, moreover, should not obscure the serious threat to the First Amendment involved in enacting what is likely to evolve into a domestic "gag rule" as, one by one, health care providers order doctors they employ not to provide patients with information about the abortion option. This echoes the way Mr. Bush reimposed a blanket Reagan-era gag rule for providers of reproductive health services abroad on his first full day in office back in 2001.

<SNIP>

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/23/opinion/23tue2.html?oref=login&oref=login&oref=login

[Cleita]

1. The war on women has began in earnest.

We are going to have to go underground I feel for awhile to make sure that women's health isn't compromised.

[jefferson_dem]

2. I fear that, but am prepared to offer whatever i can to make sure there

is NO compromise at all.

I keep thinking the "silent majority" will awaken when these bastards start to actually fiddle aroundd with Roe. Wake the hell up, people! It's only around the fucking corner, if not already here!!!

[arabella]

3. Vast populations of women don't care.

I went to the Women's March in DC and the only support I got from it was from my children, sister, and 2 gay friends (and my mom who was with me). I tried to discuss the issue of Women's Rights with a group of Pagan women and zilch. Not a peep out of them. I don't think they care. Heads are buried deep in the sand. I tell them to think of their daughters...and nothing. I should have checked for a pulse.

[Niccolo_Macchiavelli]

4. Sexual strike?

No pills, no thrills. o wait you aren't married/dating to freepers and alike. So there must be another way.


It worked with the Istanbul Women though.

[bigtree]

5. Get involved

Women's links: http://www.returningsoldiers.us/contacts.htm

http://www.lwv.org/
League of Women Voters

http://www.hermana.org/
MANA: A National Latina
Organization

http://www.hermana.org/
Mexican American Women's
Association

http://www.millionmommarch.org/
Million Mom
March

http://www.ms.foundation.org/
Ms. Foundation for
Women

http://www.naral.org/
NARAL Pro Choice America

http://www.napawf.org/
National Asian Pacific
American Women's Forum

http://www.nawho.org/
National Asian Women's Health
Organization

http://www.naswdc.org/
National Association of
Social Workers

http://www.nawbo.org/
National Association of Women
Business Owners

http://www.teenpregnancy.org/
National Campaign to
Prevent Teen Pregnancy

http://www.ncadv.org/
National Coalition Against
Domestic Violence

http://www.ncjw.org/
National Council of Jewish
Women

http://www.ncnw.org/
National Council of Negro
Women

http://www.nea.org/
National Education
Association

http://www.nfdw.org/
National Federation of
Democratic Women

http://www.latinainstitute.org/
National Latina
Institute for Reproductive Health

http://www.nationalpartnership.org/" target="_blank">National
Partnership for Women & Families

http://www.npcbw.org/
National Political Congress of
Black Women

http://www.nwpc.org/
National Women's Political
Caucus


http://www.nowldef.org/
NOW Legal Defense and
Education Fund

http://www.owl-national.org/" target="_blank"
Older Women's
League

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/
Planned Parenthood
Federation

http://www.rcrc.org/
Religious Coalition for
Reproductive Choice

http://www.voters4choice.org/
Voters for Choice

http://www.sdvmc.org/wac.htm
WAC Veterans
Association

http://www.womenmarines.org/
Women Marines
Association

http://www.coloredgirls.org/
Women of Color Resource
Center

http://www.wcfonline.org/
Women's Campaign Fund