A Call to Arms (and to Scalpels)

Three cheers for America's judicial system.  It may be the least-appreciated branch, the "Holy Spirit" of the federal government, so to speak, but for almost 40 years now it has firmly upheld Roe v. Wade against countless legal attacks to repeal and undermine it.  In the past few decades, however, slander, intimidation, and yes, even pro-life terrorism have been much more successful than legislative initiatives at chipping away at the right to choose. The pro-life side has managed, through numerous back-door approaches, to make obtaining an abortion difficult and humiliating, if still technically legal.  Today, the biggest threat to abortion rights in the US is not the legality of the procedure, but rather the logistical access to abortion services, due in large part to the near crisis-level shortage of practicing abortion providers in the US.

Abortion remains one of the most commonly-performed procedures in America, and is certainly one of the most often discussed.  Therefore, it probably surprises most people to learn that physicians who perform abortions (or "abortionists," as they are so often called) are few and far between.  As in "entire states of separation" far between.  If you need an abortion and live in Wyoming, Missouri, Mississippi, or, God forbid, Hawaii, you are shit out of luck:  these four states lack a single abortion provider.  Even in states with relatively progressive abortion laws access to abortion is hindered merely by the scarcity of providers.  In fact, the 1.21 million abortions performed in 2008 were provided by just 1,793 facilities, with half of these services provided by just 2% of OB-GYNs.  In contrast, the nation is blanketed by well over 4,000 crisis pregnancy centers.

http://www.catholicvoteaction.org/americanpapist/index.php?tag=pro-life

It's not difficult to imagine why so few physicians provide abortions.  Clinic bombings, "abortion hit lists," Bill O'Reilly's abortion witch-hunt, and the 2009 assassination of Dr. George Tiller have all achieved their intended effect:  terrifying physicians out of providing a legal and judicially-protected procedure.  There are additional factors at play as well.  Catholic hospitals, which employ around 16% of American doctors, prohibit their employees from performing abortions even to correct an ectopic pregnancy or other life-threatening complication.  Many OB-GYNs aren't even trained in the procedure, as fewer than half of residency programs require this training.  And even physicians who identify as pro-choice may be reluctant to perform abortions due to societal pressures and the awkwardness of rarely being able to discuss their work in polite conversation.

http://worstgenerationseed.blogspot.com/2009/03/truth-truck-meets-tiller-killer.html

As a very pro-choice pre-med, these matters have been on my mind for some time now.  The nation needs abortion providers.  Women need abortions, and they will not stop needing (and procuring) them just because their doctors are incompetent or untrained.  I will someday need a specialty, and I believe in providing a service that millions of women want and need.  Of course, now is not the time to commit to a career:  even by the most optimistic estimates, it will be more than five years before I have my MD.  And regardless of how passionate I am about the cause, I'm not sure whether I'm prepared for a career that will spell a lifetime of harassment, fear, disdain, and maybe even a bullet to the head.  But it's something to consider.

http://www.theologyonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=66908&page=2

To Those Who Wait

In a grand gesture that infuriated many but shocked no one, the South Dakota legislature this week passed a new law, HB 1217, which will require that women wait a minimum of 72 hours before having an abortion - which, as many have pointed out, is less than the mandatory waiting time to purchase a handgun.  The feigned motive behind the bill is to ensure that the decision to terminate a pregnancy is "voluntary, uncoerced, and informed."  Yet no one believes for a moment that SD has taken women's informed consent and reproductive autonomy to heart.  Governor Dennis Daugaard, who signed the bill, proudly states that he hopes "women will use this three-day period to make good (i.e. correct) decisions."

The law doesn't go into effect until July 1, but it already has many of us reeling.  Twenty-nine states (including my own native Georgia) currently have mandatory waiting periods for abortions, but South Dakota's is by far the longest span of time that a woman is required to "sit and think about what she's done."  I would say that the "third day" idea is some kind of Biblical allusion, but Jesus was actually only dead for 36 hours or so.

http://echealthinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/South-Dakota.jpg

You still have a choice in South Dakota... technically.

The implications of HB 1217 are enormous, even from a merely practical standpoint.  According to the Guttmacher Institute, 76% of South Dakotans live in counties with no abortion provider, so women facing an unwanted pregnancy in SD already have to make a pilgrimage to the state's one and only abortion clinic in Sioux Falls.  Under the new law, that trip will now require at least three nights at a hotel and four days' leave from work.  Alternatively, obtaining an abortion could necessitate driving back and forth from Sioux Falls several times in a week, scheduling multiple appointments with the abortion provider, and arranging for childcare.  Add to that ordeal a nice visit to the friendly neighborhood crisis pregnancy center.  Of course, it is useless to raise such criticisms of the bill, as these complications are precisely what SD lawmakers are hoping for.  Though they cannot overturn Roe v. Wade, they can make obtaining an abortion as difficult and annoying as possible.  I won't be surprised if we begin seeing 8- and 9-month-long waiting periods.

http://www.cafepress.com/+south-dakota-pro-choice+mugs

The waiting period, however, is not the worst part of this legislation.  Far and above more ludicrous is HB 1217's requirement that women undergo "counseling" at a state-funded, medically unlicensed crisis pregnancy center.  Ah, this is where those "good decisions" are to be made.  Furthermore, lest the pro-choice side start getting any ideas about offering counseling, the bill proffers an exact definition of a CPC:

“The pregnancy help center has a facility or office in the state of South Dakota in which it routinely consults with women for the purpose of helping them keep their relationship with their unborn children; that one of its principal missions is to educate, counsel, and otherwise assist women to help them maintain their relationship with their unborn children; that they do not perform abortions at their facility, and have no affiliation with any organization or physician which performs abortions; that they do not now refer pregnant women for abortions, and have not referred any pregnant women for an abortion at any time in the three years immediately preceding July 1, 2011.”

Thus, the establishment required to give women pre-abortion "counseling" must, by definition, be staunchly pro-life.  This clause was introduced under the widespread misconception that Planned Parenthood encourages women to have abortions, that it somehow has something to gain from doing so.  In fact, Planned Parenthood does provide counseling, including information about parenting and adoption, to women who are considering abortion.  The difference is that this counseling does not have an agenda to push, whereas CPCs are all hellfire and medically inaccurate ideology. These centers already outnumber abortion clinics eleven to one in South Dakota.  Now, under HB 1217, their presence and influence will be even more far-reaching, and they will have even more license to guilt, terrify, and bully girls into making "the right choice."

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-08-01/crisis-pregnancy-centers-mislead-women-new-laws-fight-back/

One of the many tools that will be used to help you make "good decisions."

Given that these centers are unabashedly religiously-affiliated, I have no idea how this clause can be constitutional; given that they force-feed their "patients" blatant and deliberate medical lies, I feel like we may be moving quickly into a post-medical dystopian society of government-sponsored deception.  Now, before I get ahead of myself spewing conspiracy theories, the absurdity and theocratic implications of this bill have already been duly noted by nearly everyone.  Article links about HB 1217 have been popping up on my Facebook newsfeed almost continuously, and the subject has come up constantly in conversation.  Rachel Maddow has already spoken out strongly against the bill; Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota have promised to take it up in court.  We haven't heard the last word on HB 1217.  Yet it's encouraging and even somewhat of a relief to hear some healthy indignation, because this is the only thing that is going to keep abortion rights in America even at a measly status quo. 

Crisis

http://www.impact73.org/Lifeboards.php

Project Lifeboard offers you "options," but not "choice."

This week there was some good news in the world of Choice.  According to the NYC city council, Crisis Pregnancy Centers, pro-life organizations which disseminate ads like the one seen above, must now specify in their ads 1) what specific services they provide, and 2) whether or not they hold a medical license.  Baby steps, but steps in the right direction.  This is some progress, but I am far from satisfied, for numerous reasons.

These centers usually present themselves as medical clinics offering abortions and other pregnancy services, though their true purpose is to dissuade girls experiencing an unwanted pregnancy from having an abortion, and often to win Christian converts along the way.  Most centers are in fact unlicensed and staffed solely by religious volunteers and medical assistants – people who have had less than 6 months of medical training.  The only services offered are pregnancy tests and ultrasounds.  Even more absurd are the tactics used to wheedle girls into choosing to keep a baby:   “patients” at these centers are shown footage of a fetus’ beating heart, are encouraged to marry the baby’s biological father, and receive blatantly incorrect medical information about the dangers of having an abortion. 

According to the website of Ramah International, an alliance of pregnancy centers,  there are a few things I should know if I am considering an abortion:  1)  Abortion is a risky procedure, often performed in unsanitary conditions.  2)  Following an abortion, I am 33% more likely to experience an ectopic pregnancy, 50% more likely to develop breast cancer, and 600% more likely to experience abruptio placenta. 3)  Following an abortion, I have a 50% chance of developing “Post-Abortion Syndrome,” which leads to depression, anxiety, and suicide.  4) My fetus can feel pain beginning at 9 weeks.  And, most ridiculous, 5) I should first take a pregnancy test at the center, because THE DOCTOR WHO TOLD ME I WAS PREGNANT MAY HAVE LIED IN ORDER TO SELL ME AN ABORTION.

These claims are all false, as well as ridiculous (honestly, has a doctor ever told someone he had cancer in order to “sell” him a surgery?)  It is one thing to run an establishment dedicated to spewing hellfire and damnation of the religious variety on women who are in genuine distress.  It is quite another, however, to disseminate deliberately false medical information in an effort to terrify and manipulate women into making what will probably be one of the most important decision of their lives.  Imagine a scared, pregnant 16-year-old girl entering what she thinks is a medical clinic, being told that she has a ~50% chance of dying from the long-term effects of an abortion, and making a decision to keep and raise a baby based on that information.

But lest you think that this is the last stop on the Crazy Train, 20 US states currently provide funding for these Crisis Pregnancy Centers (my own native Georgia being one of them).  These are tax dollars, being spent on a service that masquerades as something it’s not and then lies directly to its clients.  This is like spending state money on a fire station which pretends to be a restaurant and then tells customers that too much friction during sex will cause a forest fire.  And these are the tax dollars we can’t afford to allocate for family planning.

Though NYC has voted to begin regulating its centers’ advertising and similar measures have been enacted in Maryland, such legislation has failed in most staes.  Nationwide, crisis pregnancy centers outnumber abortion clinics 4 to 1, and receive approximately $25 million of state and federal assistance.  Using tax funds to encourage teens to marry and raise children, without providing them with the appropriate pre- or post-natal care or contraceptive options?  Makes fiscal sense to me.

Pregnant?  Alone?  Confused?  For the love of God, go to a real doctor.