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Letting Our Voices Be Heard - Taking Action On Issues Facing Women Today
by I think one of the best things about the age of the Internet, is how easy it is for us to make a difference when it comes to issues in politics. Contacting our state representatives, signing petitions, and having our voices heard has never been easier than it is NOW.
The National Organization for Women (NOW) is helping women Take Action on important political issues. It's as easy as point and click.
Let me tell you a little about some of the issues facing women today, that need your attention and action.
This week Representative Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT) will be re-introducing legislation that would make women’s health issues a priority at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). She needs you to tell your Representative to co-sponsor her legislation. - Contact Congress Now
Ask Your Representative to Co-Sponsor the FDA Scientific Fairness for Women Act - and Demand Accountability for Women's Health at the FDA.
Take a minute to urge your representative to co-sponsor this important legislation, the FDA Scientific Fairness for Women Act.
Because Congress is facing many issues at the moment, a quick phone call would be especially helpful in bringing this bill to your House member's attention. -- find out more
You can also take action on Abortion Rights and Reproductive Issues
NOW affirms that reproductive rights are issues of life and death for women, not mere matters of choice. NOW fully supports access to safe and legal abortion, to effective birth control and emergency contraception, to reproductive health services and education for all women. We oppose attempts to restrict these rights through legislation, regulation or Constitutional amendment.
Also See: The supreme Court Abortion Decision - by Ronnie Bennett
and Back Up Your Birth Control - by Denise
The Bush record on reproductive rights.
The Supreme Court Decision in Bush v. Gore appointed George W. Bush to the presidency of the United States on January 20, 2001. Since then the Bush administration has quietly, but relentlessly, done all it could to reverse nearly 30 years of progress in women's rights—especially reproductive freedoms.
Advance Women's Reproductive Health NOW - Write To Your Senators
The content of the Prevention First bills focuses on consumer education about, and providing access to, contraception, family planning services and compassionate treatment for rape survivors. It promotes: reducing teen pregnancy; providing medically accurate information; ending insurance discrimination against women; and awareness about emergency contraception (also called EC or the "morning-after pill)." The goal is to provide scientifically correct information and health care coverage and services to girls and women in order to help them prevent unwanted and unintended pregnancies and reduce the spread of sexually transmitted, often life-threatening, diseases.
These are just some of the ways you can make a difference in issues facing women today. You can find many more issues and many more ways to help at the NOW Key Issues page. So, find your voice, and find an issue that is important to you...and Take Action.
Violence Against Women is another very important issue.
Also See: Post on Domestic Violence - by Nordette
How a pair of lovers gets to this point in a relationship isn't always clear, but I thought that this might be a good time to post signs of a spouse escalating toward physical violence. Many times it doesn't happen out of the blue, especially when it happens between pairs that seem like the perfect match.
I hope this post will encourage women to seize their power, and take action. If you are a women that already takes action, please leave a comment and let us know how it makes you feel, and if you think it makes a difference.
Contributing Editor Catherine Morgan
also at Women 4 Hope and CatherineBlogs.com
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Comments
"NOW affirms that
Reproductive rights and abortion rights are not one in the same. It is very difficult for me, as a woman, to consider aborting a baby developing in the womb, a human life with a beating heart, as a way to make a case for reproductive rights. I suffered a miscarriage in 2005 and I had no way of controlling that reproduction. No one is taking away the right of a woman to reproduce. What is destroyed is the rights of the unborn.
Dana from The Dana Files.
I can understand...
Hi Dana...I can "honestly" understand, as well as have compassion and empathy for your loss.
Before I was finally able to have my two children, I suffered six miscarriages, I knew each time I had a miscarriage my chances of having a successful pregnancy was diminishing. I would cry, and wonder who these lost children might have been, I felt I failed these children by losing them (even though I knew it wasn't my fault). Finally, when I was able to have my son, I thought again about the loss of my other pregnancies...and what came to my thoughts was; Somehow, the soul of my son was trying to get to me...so my miscarriages didn't have to be looked at as the loss of children that never got a chance to live, but as the path my son's soul needed to follow to get to me.
During that time, it made me so upset to hear of women who didn't want their children and had abortions, or that mistreated the children they had. It seems so unfair. And, I still feel that way. But I also feel we need to protect a women's right to choose when and if she has a child. I wish abortion wasn't necessary, and I think there is a lot we can do to decrease the need for them (ie: education, funding for birth-control, and availability to emergency contraception, just to name a few).
Even though I don't agree with your beliefs on taking away abortion rights for women, I do support your personal conviction and your right to have and speak it. I would never want there to be a law to force someone with your beliefs to have an abortion, nor would I want there to be a law preventing a women to choose. I hope you can understand.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
When you say you wish
When you say you wish abortion wasn't necessary, do you really mean that? I am sorry to second guess your statement. I don't believe abortion is necessary. Aside form mothers in danger medically-speaking, which is not something that occurs as often as we're led to believe.
I can think of other alternatives. One of them being personal responsibility. If every person was as responsible for their actions, particularly in this case, sex, I truly believe there would be fewer unwanted pregnancies which is the number one reason women have abortions.
And women are not the only ones who need to be held accountable for their actions, men need to be responsible, too.
I understand that it's easier said than done, but I can do it.
I made the choices in my life that led me to where I am today. I'm responsible for my choices and actions. It's amazing that many people are so quick to shrug off the "choice" to abort. Where are our morals? How can society think it is not morally wrong to elect abortion?
This is something that takes more than just understanding. It will take a miracle for me to "understand" the choice to destroy life. Each and everyone one of us started as embryos or "a bunch of cells" as some people refer to it. The only difference is that some of "these cells" were wanted and were born. I'm sad that others aren't so lucky.
Dana from The Dana Files.
I did not intended this post to ignite a
debate on abortion...
Hi Dana -- Let me just say that I did not intend for this post to ignite a big debate over abortion rights. The purpose of the post was to make women aware that there are ways they can find out about issues that may be important to them, and how they can have their voices heard on these issues. If you go to the NOW site you will see that this is about much more than abortion rights, you can choose to support or not support what ever issue is important to you. I don't want to take away that important aspect of this post.
However, even though I am relatively sure this will be in vain, I will attempt to address some of the issues in your comment.
There is just so much wrong with this statement that I don't even know where to begin. So, I'll just point out one thing. Even while "taking responsibility" (ie. using birth-control) women will and do still get pregnant. Unless you sterilize everyone who is sexually active, there is going to be unwanted pregnancies. And some of those women will feel that the way for them to "take responsibility" is to terminate their pregnancy. These women are not "immoral" or "godless"...they are just women who believe differently than you.
America is the great country it is because of our differences, and our acceptance of our differences. One group of people can not have the right to dictate the morality of the entire country. It would be no different than forcing a particular religion on the entire country. We have freedom of religion in this country, and we have the choice to make reproductive decisions without interference from our government in this country, and this should not change.
Anyone who believes abortion is wrong, has the right to believe so, and by all means should not be forced to have an abortion. What is morally wrong in my mind...is when people make judgments on other people's behaviors or choices, having not walked in that person's shoes. We each have moral responsibility over ourselves, and no other person should force their personal morals onto another.
Contrary to what you may believe, your "understanding" of the issue of "choice" is not necessary. There are many things in life we will never understand, that is just part of life. The only thing that is necessary, is your decision to make moral judgments for yourself and not for others.
Your comment also suggests to me that you believe that any pregnancy that ends in a birth is a "wanted" child. I would be willing to bet that there are several times more unwanted children in the world than there are abortions. Millions of children are being abused, are homeless, and hungry. In fact this is an issue that could really use some of the attention that is now being given to the issue of abortion. Another important issue regarding "life"...is the issue of stem cells being tossed in the trash, when they could be used for the advancement of medical research.
I hope you understand that I respect your beliefs, and I respect you. But the issue of abortion, has become a political wedge issue that only serves to divide this country further, and divert attention away from "real" political issues. I mean no disrespect by this, only that reproductive rights should have no place in politics.
Just food for thought...
One hundred years from now when there is a population crisis in our country, would it be o.k. for the government to force women to have abortions? It seems that would depend on whether or not the government had political power over a women's reproductive rights.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
Very nicely done, Catherine
VERY nicely done.
~Denise
Fast Times @ Homeschool High & Flamingo House Happenings
Thanks Denise
Thanks.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
It wasn't my intention to
It wasn't my intention to make your post an abortion debate either, but it the impression you give is that reproductive rights and abortion rights are the same. They aren't. I felt this was very misleading.
Your example of a population crisis is something I don't think we'll ever see. Especially when so many women have abortions every year. And even if abortion were illegal, a population crisis can only be prevented if people abstain from sex. I don't see that happening either. Our government would never pass a law forcing women to abort and if that ever passed, then God help us all.
Planned Parenthood lists on their website that the #1 way to prevent abortion is to "Make contraception (birth control) more easily available."
However, The Alan Guttmacher Institute, Planned Parenthood's own research organization tells us that 54% of all abortions happen despite contraception use. Only 8% of women having abortions have never used birth control, and 90% of the women most likely to have an abortion are on birth control.
Isn't that a bit ironic? Birth control has done little if anything to solve the abortion problem in America.
I wasn't very clear on my statement about personal responsiblity and I apologize for my hot-headed comment.
Just using birth control is not enough. Our society is more than willing to abort. It's so much easier (cruel, but easier) to just end a pregnancy rather than be responsible for our actions. I don't think abortion makes women stronger. I don't find it very empowering or liberating. It seems like the very opposite.
If that makes me the hated one, I have to come to terms with that. I've learned to accept that I'm going to be disliked by my opponents on this matter.
Is it immoral to take another's life? I think it is. If that makes me judgmental, I accept that. But your very statement above shows you're judging me right back and that is your right. I accept that.
Like I said...
Like I said...My intention was not to turn this post into a debate on abortion. I also said...
As I imagined would be the case, my response was in vain.
In an attempt to clarify one thing...
It is my "observation" that you are being judgmental of people that don't hold to the same belief as you. This is not me making a judgment on you, just an observation of what you have already stated is true about yourself.
It seems it is your contention that no availability to birth-control would bring down the abortion rate? I'm not sure I see the logic in this theory.
Also, I would beg to differ...
I am relatively certain that "most" women would say that the choice of abortion was not an easy one. As I mentioned earlier - Since you have not walked in the shoes of these women (their financial, medical, emotional, and physical shoes), judging their actions is really beyond your scope of knowledge and understanding.
Aside from that; Your above statistics only clarify and confirm the need for women to be given more reproductive options (such as education, birth-control, and emergency birth control), not less.
And, as long as you are compelling me to continue on this soap-box, let me also ask about the lack of "outrage" over the destruction of embryos from in-vitro fertilization.
Seems an unorthodox way to protect life...but who am I to judge?
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
A quick interjection...
According do Guttmacher, 89% of abortion is in the first trimester. There are about 11,000 d & x later term procedures, pretty much exclusively for health reasons... that equates to 8 in 1,000.
Best way to reduce abortion is through universal health care, comprehensive sex ed, and widely available and cheap contraception. Better to deal with thing either before or immediately thereafter than progress to medical intervention.
Anyway, thought that might be worth pondering.
nelle
I agree...
Hi Nelle -- I agree that addressing the issues prior to or immediately after an unwanted pregnancy would be the best way to reduce the need for abortion.
Thank you for the interjection.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
Thank you...
To be clear, if my post left this unclear, I am decidedly pro-choice, and cited those figures as they indicate women do move quickly in dealing with unwanted pregnancy.
Given that those who are for tighter controls on choice seek a reduction in abortion, those things can have significant impact without restricting rights. Moreover, they should be something both sides can agree to.
nelle
It was clear to me...
Hi Nelle -- It was clear to me, and I agree 100%.
Thanks.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
Every woman has the right to choose
I am a 63 year old woman and I worked hard to see that women have a right to choose. I had doors slammed in my face and I've been spit upon by people who did not understand the word "choose," but the end result was women were given the right to choose.
A right to choose means just that--Choose. It doesn't mean I have the right to choose for my neighbor, or that my neighbor has the right to choose for me. Choose means no woman can be forced to do something she doesn't want to do.
Thank you Frances Ellen
Thanks for taking a stand - for us all.
~Denise
Fast Times @ Homeschool High & Flamingo House Happenings
A women's right to choose needs to be
protected.
Women like you should be held up as heroes. What you (and others) did for the advancement of women's rights is heroic. The thought that there are others who would fight to take these rights away from us, is very troubling to me.
Suzzane Reisman says it well in her post today, "Do the Ends Justify the Means?"
It is my belief that a women's right to choose needs to be protected.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself
One viewpoint
I spent 13 years of my life in military service protecting people's right to have opinions and attitudes and to live their lives based on those beliefs. I consider it time well spent for the most part.
However I resist the efforts of any group of those people I spent my youth protecting to force their opinions and beliefs on any other group of people.
Jim Heivilin
Thank you Jim for your service to our
country.
Thank you for your service to our country, and for your viewpoint on this issue. I agree 100%. Our country is about freedom, equality, and choice...it is a slippery slope if we allow one group of people to put limitations on the freedoms of half the population of our country.
Thank you for your comment.
Catherine Morgan
Women 4 Hope and Be The Change You Want To See In Yourself