Nineteen House Democrats recently sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) stating that they will not vote for health care reform legislation "unless it explicitly excludes abortion funding from the scope of any government-defined or subsidized health insurance plan"....
http://www.nationalpartnership.org/...
The signers are:
Dan Boren (OK-02), Bobby Bright (AL-02), Travis Childers (MS-01), Jerry Costello (IL-12), Lincoln Davis TN-04), Kathleen Dahlkemper (PA-03), Steve Driehaus (OH-01), Tim Holden (PA-17), Paul Kanjorski (PA-14), Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Mike McIntyre (NC-07), Charlie Melancon (LA-03), John Murtha (PA-12), James Oberstar (MN-08), Solomon Ortiz (TS-27), Colin Peterson (MN-07), Heath Shuler (NC-011), Bart Stupak (MI-01) and Gene Taylor (MS-04)
Rep. Dan Boren, a pro-life congressman from Oklahoma, organized the letter and is the lead signer of it.
"As the debate on health care reform continues and legislation is produced, it is imperative that the issue of abortion not be overlooked," they write. "Plans to mandate coverage for abortions, either directly or indirectly, are unacceptable."
"We cannot support any health care reform proposal unless it explicitly excludes abortion from the scope of any government-defined or subsidized health insurance plan," the lawmakers say. "We believe that a government-defined or subsidized health insurance plan should not be used to fund abortion."
http://lifenews.com/...
Obviously, these 19 Democrats do not believe that women can be trusted, that women as a class are not mature enough, not responsible enough, to make decisions regarding their reproductive health and that therefore it is necessary to legislate the necessary laws to prevent women from exercising any sort of choice over their reproductive health.
I know the following is hard for these legislators to swallow, but I submit it anyway:
Let's just trust women.
Seems easy enough, I know. But given that over 30 years after Roe women are still fighting the same battles, maybe we need a remedial course.
Trust women to know what's best for themselves and their families
Many women who choose to have abortions do so out of concern for their existing children. It's time to put to bed the bullshit stereotypes of women having abortions out of "convenience" or selfishness.
Trust young women to make decisions about their future
Whether it's access to emergency contraception or abortion, young women have the right to make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Not to mention, let's be logical. If we're too young to make the decision to prevent or end a pregnancy, how are we not too young to have a child?
Trust low-income women--don't punish them
Sure, Roe legalized abortion--but the many laws impeding access to abortion disproportionately affect low-income women. Mandatory waiting periods are unreasonable for low-income women who often can't take more than a day off of work and for rural women who need to travel long distances to get to their nearest abortion provider. Not to mention the Hyde Amendment, which has been around almost as long as Roe and prevents federal Medicaid funding for abortion. Hyde doesn't get much attention these days--as Jill from Feministe says, "The women who are being most negatively affected by Hyde are poor women, women of color, women who rely on government aid--you know, women who just don't matter as much as wealthier white women who have the privilege and time to get out and vote, to contribute to the Democratic party, to attend the fundraisers."
Trust women to have children
One aspect of reproductive justice that isn't often talked about is the right to have children. At a recent conference for the National Advocates for Pregnant Women, women spoke out about the U.S.'s history with sterilizing women (especially low-income women and women of color) and punitive "fetal rights" laws. Whether women are terminating a pregnancy or want to carry a pregnancy to term--we have to trust women with their bodies and reproductive health and futures.
Thank you, Jessica Valenti, for penning this in January of 2007 on Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...