NARAL PRO-CHOICE COLORADO STATEMENT ON ATTACK ON REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM
For Immediate Release
Monday, October 8, 2007
Contact: Kathryn Wittneben
NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado
Office: 303.394.1973, ext. 12
kwittneben@ProChoiceColorado.org Column in Denver Post cloaks anti-choice rhetoric in false claims for compassion DENVER (Oct. 8) – In response to a column published in the October 3, 2007, edition of The Denver Post that featured an unapologetic attack a woman's fundamental right to choose abortion, NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado Executive Director Kathryn Wittneben and Deputy Director Toni Panetta issued the following statement of response: “In a column published in The Denver Post on Oct. 3 (“Is our compassion consistent?”), former state Senator Mark Hillman presents a hypocritical, unapologetic attack on a woman’s fundamental right to make personal, private decisions about issues that affect her life and her health. “Contrary to Mr. Hillman’s assertion that late abortions occur for no reason at all, the National Abortion Federation reports that fewer than 2% of abortions nationwide occur after the 21st week of pregnancy, and those that occur after 26 weeks are generally limited to cases of severe fetal anomalies or instances where the life or health of the woman is at risk. These are very real human tragedies – instances when pregnant women find themselves unexpectedly diagnosed with cancer, heart disease, or life-threatening forms of diabetes; when car accidents and other tragedies make continuation of a pregnancy a threat to a woman’s life; or when the fetus is discovered to have an undeveloped brain, a severe metabolic disorder, or vital organ failure. “How many women and families is Mr. Hillman willing to sacrifice in the name of “consistent compassion” by making abortion illegal? How many women should forego chemotherapy to combat cancer or should be denied critical medication to stabilize mental illnesses like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia – treatments that could have devastating effects on the development of a fetus? How many children should lose their mothers because a life-saving abortion is illegal? How many women should be sentenced to blindness, future sterility, or other health complications because the decades-long principle of protecting a woman’s right to choose abortion after fetal viability to preserve her health doesn’t measure up to Mr. Hillman’s personal moral strictures? “Being pro-choice doesn’t mean being pro-abortion. Being pro-choice means realizing that these situations are personal, private, and complicated, and decisions in these situations should be left to a woman and her doctor, in consultation with her family, and in keeping with her own religious beliefs. “Mr. Hillman further suggests that pro-choice advocates exploit the emotional weight of rape and incest to mislead a sympathetic public into ensuring abortion remains safe and legal in Colorado and across the nation. Yet how consistent was Mr. Hillman’s compassion when, while serving in the 2005 State senate, he voted against a law that would have ensured rape survivors received information about high doses of ordinary birth control that can prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex – thus reducing the need for abortion? (Five years after its original introduction, a similar bill was signed into law earlier this year.) “During his years as a state senator, Mr. Hillman abdicated his responsibility to put forth policy options to reduce unintended pregnancy, and therefore the need for abortion, without denying women access to the critical medical services they need. Instead, he repeatedly opposed measures that called for increased access to family planning services and prenatal care. He supported measures that would have made abortion illegal in Colorado. “How many Colorado women would be seeking unsafe, self-induced abortions today if then-Senator Hillman got his way and abortion became illegal? How many trained medical professionals would be imprisoned for providing safe medical care? How many years in jail would Colorado women be serving for being accessories to the crime of abortion? “If Mr. Hillman was genuine in wanting to end abortion, he would support efforts undertaken by organizations like NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado to prevent unintended pregnancy – not to criminalize doctors and women. NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado has teamed with a number of non-profit organizations, policymakers, and other leaders throughout the state to pursue policies that empower Colorado women and girls to make responsible, informed decisions to reduce unintended pregnancy and to make choices that promote healthy lives, families and communities. “By emphasizing prevention first in reproductive health care policy, Colorado can lead the nation in preventing unintended pregnancy – and reducing the need for abortion. Emphasizing prevention first also can empower Coloradans to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of dangerous diseases; ensure women have access to the full range of reproductive health services; increase the likelihood that women receive appropriate prenatal care when they become pregnant; promote responsible health practices within families that can be passed on to future generations; and reduce costs for health care services that are related to preventable conditions. We challenge Mr. Hillman to join NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado and our partners in pursuit of prevention-first policies to ensure that every child born in Colorado is a wanted child, every woman and man in Colorado has the resources and tools to make responsible, informed choices about having a family, and every Coloradan maintains access to the full range of reproductive health care options.” NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado (NPCC) is the political action arm of the pro-choice movement in Colorado. NPCC has more than 30,000 supporters statewide and works to develop and sustain a constituency that uses the political process to guarantee every woman the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive health choices, including preventing unintended pregnancies, bearing healthy children and choosing legal abortion. ###
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