"Shame And Stigma: What A 3-Minute Video Can Teach Us About Anti-Choice Media"

See video HERE

What she said:

HANNAH GROCH-BEGLEY blog post @ Media Matters

Part of the past success of the anti-choice movement has been using the media to convince Americans that abortion is gross and dangerous. As Amanda Marcotte has explained, the anti-choice movement loves to focus particularly on third-trimester abortions, "because they are especially disgusting":

...and therefore make a good cudgel to attack all abortion rights. And since they are so emotionally fraught, they have a great deal of appeal to the ghouls that populate the anti-choice movement, the ones who spend obscene percentages of their lives dwelling on graphic pictures of dead fetuses.

But third-trimester procedures are only about one percent of abortions performed in the US; the overwhelming majority -- 90 percent -- occur during the first trimester, and are significantly safer and easier medical procedures. Most women can take a simple drug; if they opt for surgery, the procedure takes just a few minutes.

But conservative media and anti-choice activists have dominated the conversation about abortion, allowing myths, misinformation, and stigma to perpetuate. 

This damaging deficit of accurate information in the media prompted Emily Letts, an abortion counselor, to film her own first-trimester abortion and post the video online. As she explained in an opinion piece forCosmopolitan, the misinformation about abortion has overwhelmed the reality, and shame and fear of the procedure makes finding the facts more difficult:

I searched the Internet, and I couldn't find a video of an actual surgical procedure in the clinic that focused on the woman's experience. We talk about abortion so much and yet no one really knows what it actually looks like. A first trimester abortion takes three to five minutes. It is safer than giving birth. There is no cutting, and risk of infertility is less than 1 percent. Yet women come into the clinic all the time terrified that they are going to be cut open, convinced that they won't be able to have kids after the abortion. The misinformation is amazing, but think about it: They are still willing to sacrifice these things because they know that they can't carry the child at this moment.

Posting a video about your abortion may seem provocative. But the video is not graphic or scary. It shows Letts' face as she softly hums to herself during the five minute procedure, quietly and calmly, and shows her speaking to the camera before and after the procedure about how she's feeling. At the end, a month after the abortion, she says she knows that it was the right choice for her, and that she wanted to share her story.

__________

There is more in Hannah Groch-Begley's post about how FOX news denigrates Emily Letts because they don't want her to have any influence.

Murder / Not Murder

"(6) Ways to Beat the Patriarchal Christian Right on Abortion"

By Valerie Tarico 

(highlights - see article for full story) Most Americans think of childbearing as a deeply personal or even sacred decision. So do most reproductive rights advocates. That is why we don’t think anybody’s boss or any institution should have a say in it. But for almost three decades, those of us who hold this view have failed to create a resonant conversation about why, sometimes, it is morally or spiritually imperative that a woman can stop a pregnancy that is underway....

 Can we reclaim the moral and spiritual high ground? Yes. But to do so will require a challenge to the status quo on two fronts. Rather than ignoring the right's claims, we must confront their arguments. We must also express our pro-choice position in clear, resonant moral and spiritual terms. In other words, in combination, we must show why ours is the more moral, more spiritual position.

 This isn’t as hard as it sounds. Most “pro-life” positions aren’t really pro-life; they are no-choice. They are designed to protecttraditional gender roles and patriarchal institutions and, specifically, institutional religion. The Catholic Bishops and Southern Baptist Convention—both leaders in the charge against reproductive rights-- represent traditions in which male “headship” and control of female fertility have long been tools of competition for money and power. They use moral language to advance goals that have little to do with the wellbeing of women or children or the sacred web of life that sustains us all. 

The arguments they make to attain these ends are powerful emotionally but not rationally. They appeal to antiquated and brittle conceptions of God. They appeal to the crumbling illusion of biblical and ecclesiastical perfection—and the crumbling authority of authority itself. They corrupt the civil rights tradition and turn religious freedom on its head. They play games with our protective instinct and cheapen what it means to be a person. They lie.

That adds up to a lot of vulnerability in what should be the stronghold of the priesthood: their claim to speak for what is good and right. If we want Americans to understand and distance from the moral emptiness of the “pro-life” movement, we will have to challenge the patriarchs in on their home turf, in their position as moral guides.

 Here, for openers, are a few ways we might change the conversation:

1. Talk about the whole moral continuum. · No-choice advocates say: Abortion is immoral. God hates abortion. · We can say: For me, bringing a child into the world under bad circumstances is immoral. It violates my moral and spiritual values. / Whose god decides?

2. Challenge the personhood/fetus-as-baby concept both philosophically and visually. · They say: Abortion is murder. Abortion kills little babies. · We can say: A person can think and feel. My cat can feel hungry or hurt or curious or content; an embryo cannot. / Thanks to better and better pregnancy tests, over 60 percent of abortions now occur before 9 weeks of gestation. Want to see what they actually look like?

3. Admit that the qualities of personhood begin to emerge during gestation. · They say: A fetus is a baby. A baby is a living soul from the moment of conception. · We can say: In nature, most fertilized eggs never become babies. A fetus is becoming a baby, grows into a baby, is a potential person,or is becoming a person.

4. Pin blame for high abortion rates where it belongs – on those who oppose contraception—and call out the immorality of their position because it causes expense and suffering. · They say: Liberals are to blame for abortion. Planned Parenthood is an abortion mill. · We can say: Obstructing contraceptive knowledge and access causes abortion and unwanted babies. That’s what’s immoral. We have the technology to prevent almost all of the suffering and expense caused by unintended pregnancy, but many women don’t have access to that information or technology because of the twisted moral priorities of religious and cultural conservatives. Barack Obama and Planned Parenthood have done more to prevent abortions in America than all of the choice opponents combined. The no-choice position is anti-life. It kills women. It puts faith over life.

5. Acknowledge and address the powerful mixed feelings surrounding abortion. · They Say: Abortion is psychologically scarring. Women end up haunted by guilt and permanently traumatized after having an abortion. · We can say: No one should do something that violates her own values. Violating your values is wounding; that is why each woman should be supported in following her own moral, spiritual and life values when making decisions about pregnancy.

6. OWN religious freedom. · They say: Employers shouldn’t be forced to provide contraceptive or abortion coverage. · We Can Say: The freedom to choose how your employees spend their hard earned benefits and the freedom to choose whether to have a child are two very different things. No institution—and nobody’s boss--should have a say in one of the most personal and sacred decisions we can make: whether to have child. That is why all women, regardless of who they work for, should have access to the full range of contraceptives and reproductive care.

"Michigan Politician on H.B. 5711: "This Isn't about Protecting Women, It's about Protecting Fetuses!"

From RHRealityCheck.org H.B. 5711, the Michigan omnibus anti-abortion "super bill" passed last week during the lame duck session of the state legislature, is a hefty 80-odd pages worth of restrictions and regulations on abortions, providers, clinics, and medical practices. It was overwhelmingly passed by both chambers of the legislature, but how many even knew what they were actually voting for? Emily Magner of Social Work Advocacy Coalition of Michigan, shares a story on Eclectablog of her late November meeting with one local legislator, state Senator Howard Walker, who voted in favor of the bill. A bill which as of the end of November he couldn't even be bothered to read.

We went on to talk specifically about how this bill will harm Michigan women, disproportionately women living in rural areas like ours. After we brought up a few of these points he put up his hands and said that he couldn’t really speak to those topics … he had not read the bill. In front of him was a one paragraph synopsis I assume was from the Right to Life special interest organization who drafted the bill. Howard Walker had not even bothered to read it. We spoke with him for 20 minutes, the whole time he was dismissive, misinformed, and rude. When his handler told him, “5 more minutes,” I told him that I would never ask him to change his beliefs on abortion, I would protect his right to believe whatever he wanted, but I did want him to consider the harmful implications that this legislation would have on women and consider his ethical obligation to his field to leave his personal views at the door. Before I could finish my sentence, he waved his hand dismissively and interrupted, “THIS ISN’T ABOUT WOMEN! THIS IS ABOUT PROTECTING FETUSES!”

Republican Governor Rick Snyder has less than two weeks to decide whether he is just as dismissive of women as Senator Walker is or whether he will veto the bill.

Reva Siegel delivering Harris Lecture Sept 27 @ noon

Yale professor to deliver Harris Lecture at IU Maurer School of Law BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A distinguished constitutional law scholar will deliver the Harris Lecture at the IU Maurer School of Law on Thursday, Sept. 27. Reva Siegel, the Nicholas deB. Katzenbach Professor of Law at Yale University, will speak on "The Woman Question: From Suffrage to Abortion and Beyond." She will discuss how the discourse by proponents and opponents of abortion rights in the late 20th century has become a debate about the question of women's roles and helped shape current constitutional law.

Siegel's writing draws on legal history to explore questions of law and inequality and to analyze how courts interact with representative government and popular movements in interpreting the Constitution. She is currently writing on the role of social movement conflict in guiding constitutional change, addressing this question in recent articles on the enforcement of Brown v. Board of Education, originalism and the Second Amendment, the "de facto ERA" and reproductive rights.

Siegel received her Bachelor of Arts, Master of Philosophy and Juris Doctor from Yale University, clerked for Judge Spottswood Robinson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and began her teaching career at the University of California-Berkeley. Established in 1946 by a trust from the bequest of India Crago Harris in the name of her husband, Addison C. Harris, the Harris Lecture Series brings prominent scholars to the Maurer School of Law. Harris was an Indiana lawyer and president of the old Indiana Law School. He was appointed minister to Austria-Hungary by President William McKinley.

Past Harris lecturers have included Derrick Bell, Robert Bork, Guido Calabresi, Jules Coleman, Owen Fiss, Laurence Tribe and Elizabeth Warren. From 1956, the Harris Lectures have been published in the Indiana Law Journal. The first lecture to be published was given by Chief Justice Earl Warren, who delivered the keynote address at the dedication ceremonies for the new Law School building.

The Harris Lecture will begin at 12:00 noon in the Law School's Moot Court Room. It is free and open to the public. One hour of Indiana continuing legal education credit will be awarded.

80th Anniversary Celebration with Ashley Judd

Planned Parenthood of Indiana has been "Daring to Care since 1932."  Join us to reflect on the past and toast our next 80 years of quality care, education and advocacy. EVENT DETAILS   Saturday, December 1, 2012 Downtown Indianapolis 4:30 p.m. General and VIP Receptions 5:45 p.m. Program Begins Heavy Hors D'oeuvres Cash Bar Purchase your ticket online. HERITAGE SPONSOR - $1,500 Includes four VIP tickets and admission to VIP reception with Ms. Judd, complimentary wine service and VIP seating during the program. EVENT TICKET - $80 Includes general reception with heavy hors d'oeuvres, cash bar and theater-style seating during the program. Group Pack - $720 (includes ten event tickets) Under 30? Pay just $30 for your event ticket! Tickets available while they last. Ticket sales end November 27. We hope you will join us for a fantastic evening with Ashley Judd as we celebrate our first 80 years and kick off the next 80 years of daring to care!

League of Women Voters Forum - Indy - Sept. 6th

The League of Women Voters is hosting their first Indiana General Assembly Candidate Forum and I’d love to see you all there! It’s a great opportunity to meet candidates for our legislature, make your positions known and exercise your advocate energy. We hope those of you in the area will attend one of the forums.  Please let me know if you have questions.

 

The first forum is as follows:

September 6, 2012

Big Car Service Center

3819 Lafayette Road, 46254

7:00pm

Birth Control Saves Women's Lives

Meeting the global need for contraception could cut maternal mortality by
an additional 29%.

Family planning prevents maternal deaths due to pregnancy complications
(including unsafe abortion, which accounts for 13% of maternal deaths
worldwide). Each year, 50 million women seek pregnancy termination, which
remains illegal and unsafe in many countries. To estimate the effect of
satisfying the unmet need for contraception, information from the Maternal
Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group database, the UN World
Contraceptive Use 2010 database, and the UN World Population Prospects 2010
database was used to model maternal deaths averted by contraceptive use in
172 countries. The researchers then modeled the number of additional
maternal deaths that could be averted if the global need for contraception
were met.

These models estimate that the current level of contraceptive use averted
272,040 premature maternal deaths worldwide in 2008. Without contraceptive
use, maternal mortality would have been 1.8 times higher. The models also
suggest that satisfying the unmet need for contraception could prevent an
additional 104,000 maternal deaths annually, a 29% reduction from the
current rate.

Comment: Although many people have long recognized family planning as a
cornerstone of global health and development, international commitment to
funding for these essential health services has remained limited. This is
unfortunate, as investments in contraception are estimated to save up to
US$7 for every dollar invested (Am J Public Health 2009; 99:446). As
Melinda Gates has said, there should be "no controversy in contraception."

-- Eleanor Bimla Schwarz, MD, MS

Published in Journal Watch Women's Health August 16, 2012 Citation(s):

Ahmed S et al. Maternal deaths averted by contraceptive use: An analysis of
172 countries. Lancet 2012 Jul 14; 380:111. 

More on the GOP Platform

GOP approves platform banning abortion, gay marriages

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Republicans emphatically approved a toughly worded party platform at their national convention Tuesday that would ban all abortions and gay marriages, reshape Medicare into a voucher-like program and cut taxes...

The party states that "the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed." It opposes using public revenues to promote or perform abortion or to fund organizations that perform or advocate abortions. It says the party will not fund or subsidize health care that includes abortion coverage...

The platform pledges to move both Medicare and Medicaid away from "the current unsustainable defined-benefit entitlement model to a fiscally sound defined-contribution model." It supports a Medicare transition to a premium-support model with an income-adjusted contribution toward a health plan of the enrollee's choice. Age eligibility in Medicare must be made more realistic in light of longer life spans.

Medicaid services for low income people would be transformed into a block grant program in which the states would be given the flexibility to determine the best programs for their residents...

It states that a Republican president on his first day in office would use his waiver authority to halt progress in carrying out the health care act pushed through by President Barack Obama and that Republican victories in November would guarantee that the act is never implemented. It proposes a Republican plan based on improving health care quality and lowering costs and a system that promotes the free market and gives consumers more choice...

It says Republicans renew their call for replacing family planning programs for teens "with abstinence education which teaches abstinence until marriage as the responsible and respected standard of behavior."

Six Ways The GOP Platform Is Bad News For Women's Bottom Lineby Bryce Covert (Forbes.com)

1. Repealing ObamaCare (ObamaCare creates gender equity, provides for access to contraception, among other things)

2. Controlling Your Fertility (disallows women to make decisions for selves)

3. “Reforming” Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security (Social Security is the only income for app. 1/3 of women over 65 - The GOP plan puts many women at risk)

4. More welfare reform (c. 90% adult beneficiaries of TANF are women)

5. Reducing government payrolls, including teachers

6. Single mothers = bad   (no help - just vilification)

See article for more details

From Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana

Stay energized and involved! Check out some upcoming events! See the complete calendar Protest Against Mitt Romney and Budget Cuts Who's on the Chopping Block? Veterans? Workers? Retirees? Students? All of them and add women, families, and animals to that chopping block....we all need to run for our lives and head out to protest the Romney/Ryan Budget Cuts.

Mitt Romney is speaking at the Indianapolis Convention Center on Wednesday. Lets show Romney that Hoosiers don't believe in the budget cuts he's proposing & he isn't the key to rebuilding America or the Middle Class. Indiana Convention Center (Corner of Capitol & Maryland), Indianapolis IN Wednesday, August 29 2:30-3:30pm RSVP at the event page

51% Club Phone Bank Hundreds of thousands of Hoosier women who voted in the 2008 Democratic Primary did not vote in 2010. It is the goal of the 51% Club to bring those women back to the polls this November. Help us reach them. Join us for our weekly Marion County phone bank. 2601 East 46th St. Indianapolis, IN 46205 Wednesdays, from 5:30-8pm RSVP to Katie Blair at 51percent@indems.org

Miracle Mile Festival  Join us in honoring Hoosier legends at the Miracle Mile Festival! Madison Avenue, Indianapolis IN Saturday, September 1 11am-3pm RSVP to Katie Blair at 51percent@indems.org

Indiana AIDS Walk This year's Indiana AIDS Walk will be a "Walk Around the Block," a roughly one-mile walk through beautiful Herron Morton Place neighborhood, with entertainment and activities along the route. First 200 walkers get free BBQ! Must be over 21 or older to enter. 16th & Alabama St, Indianapolis IN Saturday, September 29 4-7pm Register here! If you are an advocate who wants to be more involved, contact advocates@ppin.org for volunteer opportunities!

Republicans alienating women with their cluelessness

Rep. Todd Akin, (R-MO) Senate Candidate from Missouri told a local television station that “legitimate rape” rarely produces pregnancy because “the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.” Akin cited conversations with unnamed doctors for the bizarre claim. 

Tom Smith, a Tea Party-endorsed candidate running against Sen. Bob Casey in Pennsylvania suggested that having a child out of wedlock (from a positive relationship) was analogous to having a child from a rape.

Paul Ryan, (R-WI) Vice presidential candidate, says that he believes that rape is just another “method of conception” and not an excuse to allow abortions.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), co-sponsored a bill with Akin that sought to restrict federal assistance to rape victims unless they suffered what Akin and Ryan called “forcible rape.” 

Clearly these men do not take rape seriously. Their laws would give rapists control over a woman and her body - not just for however long the rape lasts - but potentially for the next 9 months, and the rest of her life. And they have stupid ideas about some rapes being more "legitimate" than others.

 GOP Approves ‘Most Conservative Platform In Modern History’

Including:

• NO ABORTION IN CASES OF RAPE OR INCEST. The proposal for a “human life amendment” passed without a hitch — and without any exceptions for rape or incest. The committee didn’t stop there; they also adopted language that would ban drugs that end pregnancy after conception, which could potentially include Plan B, the “morning after pill.”
• SALUTE TO MANDATORY ULTRASOUNDS. The GOP officially praises states’ “informed consent” laws that force women to undergo unnecessary procedures, require waiting periods and endure other measures meant to discourage them from getting an abortion. One such law receiving a “salute” was crafted by committee head McDonnell, who passed a notorious mandatory ultrasound requirement after he signed an unsuccessful bill to require an even more invasive transvaginal probe ultrasound during an abortion consultation.

Republicans at all levels of government are a problem for women, and everyone who has to live with their policies.

Legitimate Rape (Video) by the Renegade Raging Grannies

http://youtu.be/Anc_gP2_QeI

"The Renegade Raging Grannies let Todd Akin know what they think of his Neanderthal concepts about how women's bodies work. See full lyrics at www.raginggrannies.net"