News From RCRC
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice—National Report
Welcome to the biweekly National Report, providing you with the
pro-choice pro-faith perspective on the news. Thank you for keeping the
faith for choice!
In This Issue
*Blackmun Papers Reveal That Roe Was Almost Overturned in 1992
*RCRC Testifies About Clergy Counseling
*Justice Department Backs Off
*Chicago-Area Merger Will Deny Women Full Services
*Excitement Builds for April 25 March!
*Blackmun Papers Reveal That Roe Was Almost Overturned in 1992
Abortion rights were almost overturned by one vote in 1992, according to
papers of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun, author
of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and a staunch supporter of
abortion rights.
Blackmun’s papers and transcripts of interviews were made public last
week, on the fifth anniversary of his death. They reveal that the
Court's 5-4 majority, led by Chief Justice William Rehnquist, appeared
ready to effectively overturn Roe in the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v.
Casey. Justice Anthony Kennedy initially voted with the anti-Roe
conservatives, giving them a majority of five, but he subsequently
changed his vote. "The switch came even as Rehnquist was circulating a
so-called majority opinion that would have left Roe a meaningless
shell," according to NPR's Morning Edition. Blackmun said that Kennedy
“was especially worried about the attention he would get as a Roman
Catholic reaffirming Roe.”
The papers include a 1973 memo in which Blackmun expressed frustration
that the release of the Roe ruling was being delayed on the eve of
President Nixon's second inauguration, the Washington Post reported.
Later, Blackmun was concerned that anti-Roe justices were attempting to
delay Casey because they thought the chances of overturning Roe would be
better if it were not an election year. Blackman, nominated as a
"conservative" by President Nixon, expressed hope that his work had
contributed to "the progress of the emancipation of women," according to
the New York Times.
*********************************************************************
*RCRC Testifies About Clergy Counseling
Compassionate, nonjudgmental counseling by clergy has helped many women
facing a problem pregnancy come to a decision they believe is moral and
responsible. Testifying at a U.S. Senate hearing convened by a
well-known anti-choice Senator, an RCRC clergy counselor explained that
women benefit from supportive counseling.
Reverend Dr. Roselyn Smith-Withers, co-convenor of the RCRC Clergy
Advisory Committee and a trained counselor, expressed deep concern about
efforts to stigmatize abortion and women who have abortions. These
attempts “simplify the complex nature of each woman's feelings” and may
“induce guilt and undermine a woman's self-respect and confidence that
God can and does speak directly to her,” she testified.
Despite numerous well-designed and scientifically rigorous studies,
Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) called the hearing to promote interest in
research on anti-choice claims about abortion. Brownback suggested that
long-term federally funded research be conducted on women who have had
an abortion, with data collection at regular intervals for up to 20
years after their abortion.
*********************************************************************
*Justice Department Backs Off
The Justice Department has dropped its demand, at least for now, that
six Planned Parenthood clinics provide medical records on women who had
abortions. DOJ had subpoenaed records in preparation for its defense of
the 2003 “partial-birth abortion ban act.” The DOJ decision was in
response to a judgment in federal court in San Francisco that the
government's demand for the records was an undue intrusion on patients'
rights.
According to The New York Times, Planned Parenthood last month agreed to
turn over to the government its redacted records on 17 cases from 2002
involving second-trimester abortions. But the group maintains that the
other records sought by the Justice Department are more extensive and
irrelevant to the lawsuit. The Justice Department is still demanding
abortion records from at least a half-dozen hospitals in New York and
Philadelphia, among other places.
*********************************************************************
*Chicago-Area Merger Will Deny Women Full Services
The Illinois State Health Facilities Planning Board on March 10 approved
the takeover of nonsectarian West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park by the
Catholic Resurrection Health system, a move vigorously opposed by the
Illinois Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice. The Oak Park
facility will now be governed by Catholic health-care directives
prohibiting reproductive health services that have long been available
to West Suburban patients, including contraception, tubal ligations and
emergency contraception (EC).
Under the merger agreement, Resurrection will transfer control of three
community-based clinics to a non-profit corporation. The clinics will
provide vital family planning services previously available at the
hospital. Rape victims who go to the West Suburban emergency room will
no longer be offered emergency contraception–which is highly effective
in preventing unintended pregnancy if taken soon after unprotected
sex—if a test shows they may be ovulating.
Women who use this hospital are being denied full treatment under this
merger agreement, said Barbara Kavadias, RCRC Field Services director
and representative to the National Advisory Board of MergerWatch, the
lead organization opposing the merger. “A woman who has been raped,
beaten, and traumatized should not have to go to a community clinic or
be passed from one person to another to get standard care.”
In a letter to Chicago newspapers, Reverend Edward Searl of the Illinois
RCRC wrote: “I respect the right of individuals to live according to
their own religious beliefs. Nevertheless, I think it is wrong for a
hospital that serves a religiously and culturally diverse community to
impose those beliefs on people who may not share them.” Betty Holcomb of
the Illinois RCRC was active in presenting testimony against the merger
and organizing opposition among religious congregations.
*********************************************************************
*Excitement Builds for April 25 March!
Excitement is growing as people from all over the country make their
plans to be in Washington DC for the historic March for Women’s Lives
April 25.
RCRC affiliates have chartered trains from Boston and New York for the
March. This will be a ride to remember, with lots of pro-choice
supporters who are energized by being part of this historic event. Buy
your tickets early. For New York information, visit
http://www.nyrcrc.org. For Massachusetts, contact www.rcrcofma.org
However you travel, we hope you will be on the National Mall in time for
the RCRC Prayerfully Pro-Choice Interfaith Service, starting at 9:30
a.m.
Welcome to the biweekly National Report, providing you with the
pro-choice pro-faith perspective on the news. Thank you for keeping the
faith for choice!
In This Issue
*Blackmun Papers Reveal That Roe Was Almost Overturned in 1992
*RCRC Testifies About Clergy Counseling
*Justice Department Backs Off
*Chicago-Area Merger Will Deny Women Full Services
*Excitement Builds for April 25 March!
*Blackmun Papers Reveal That Roe Was Almost Overturned in 1992
Abortion rights were almost overturned by one vote in 1992, according to
papers of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun, author
of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and a staunch supporter of
abortion rights.
Blackmun’s papers and transcripts of interviews were made public last
week, on the fifth anniversary of his death. They reveal that the
Court's 5-4 majority, led by Chief Justice William Rehnquist, appeared
ready to effectively overturn Roe in the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v.
Casey. Justice Anthony Kennedy initially voted with the anti-Roe
conservatives, giving them a majority of five, but he subsequently
changed his vote. "The switch came even as Rehnquist was circulating a
so-called majority opinion that would have left Roe a meaningless
shell," according to NPR's Morning Edition. Blackmun said that Kennedy
“was especially worried about the attention he would get as a Roman
Catholic reaffirming Roe.”
The papers include a 1973 memo in which Blackmun expressed frustration
that the release of the Roe ruling was being delayed on the eve of
President Nixon's second inauguration, the Washington Post reported.
Later, Blackmun was concerned that anti-Roe justices were attempting to
delay Casey because they thought the chances of overturning Roe would be
better if it were not an election year. Blackman, nominated as a
"conservative" by President Nixon, expressed hope that his work had
contributed to "the progress of the emancipation of women," according to
the New York Times.
*********************************************************************
*RCRC Testifies About Clergy Counseling
Compassionate, nonjudgmental counseling by clergy has helped many women
facing a problem pregnancy come to a decision they believe is moral and
responsible. Testifying at a U.S. Senate hearing convened by a
well-known anti-choice Senator, an RCRC clergy counselor explained that
women benefit from supportive counseling.
Reverend Dr. Roselyn Smith-Withers, co-convenor of the RCRC Clergy
Advisory Committee and a trained counselor, expressed deep concern about
efforts to stigmatize abortion and women who have abortions. These
attempts “simplify the complex nature of each woman's feelings” and may
“induce guilt and undermine a woman's self-respect and confidence that
God can and does speak directly to her,” she testified.
Despite numerous well-designed and scientifically rigorous studies,
Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) called the hearing to promote interest in
research on anti-choice claims about abortion. Brownback suggested that
long-term federally funded research be conducted on women who have had
an abortion, with data collection at regular intervals for up to 20
years after their abortion.
*********************************************************************
*Justice Department Backs Off
The Justice Department has dropped its demand, at least for now, that
six Planned Parenthood clinics provide medical records on women who had
abortions. DOJ had subpoenaed records in preparation for its defense of
the 2003 “partial-birth abortion ban act.” The DOJ decision was in
response to a judgment in federal court in San Francisco that the
government's demand for the records was an undue intrusion on patients'
rights.
According to The New York Times, Planned Parenthood last month agreed to
turn over to the government its redacted records on 17 cases from 2002
involving second-trimester abortions. But the group maintains that the
other records sought by the Justice Department are more extensive and
irrelevant to the lawsuit. The Justice Department is still demanding
abortion records from at least a half-dozen hospitals in New York and
Philadelphia, among other places.
*********************************************************************
*Chicago-Area Merger Will Deny Women Full Services
The Illinois State Health Facilities Planning Board on March 10 approved
the takeover of nonsectarian West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park by the
Catholic Resurrection Health system, a move vigorously opposed by the
Illinois Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice. The Oak Park
facility will now be governed by Catholic health-care directives
prohibiting reproductive health services that have long been available
to West Suburban patients, including contraception, tubal ligations and
emergency contraception (EC).
Under the merger agreement, Resurrection will transfer control of three
community-based clinics to a non-profit corporation. The clinics will
provide vital family planning services previously available at the
hospital. Rape victims who go to the West Suburban emergency room will
no longer be offered emergency contraception–which is highly effective
in preventing unintended pregnancy if taken soon after unprotected
sex—if a test shows they may be ovulating.
Women who use this hospital are being denied full treatment under this
merger agreement, said Barbara Kavadias, RCRC Field Services director
and representative to the National Advisory Board of MergerWatch, the
lead organization opposing the merger. “A woman who has been raped,
beaten, and traumatized should not have to go to a community clinic or
be passed from one person to another to get standard care.”
In a letter to Chicago newspapers, Reverend Edward Searl of the Illinois
RCRC wrote: “I respect the right of individuals to live according to
their own religious beliefs. Nevertheless, I think it is wrong for a
hospital that serves a religiously and culturally diverse community to
impose those beliefs on people who may not share them.” Betty Holcomb of
the Illinois RCRC was active in presenting testimony against the merger
and organizing opposition among religious congregations.
*********************************************************************
*Excitement Builds for April 25 March!
Excitement is growing as people from all over the country make their
plans to be in Washington DC for the historic March for Women’s Lives
April 25.
RCRC affiliates have chartered trains from Boston and New York for the
March. This will be a ride to remember, with lots of pro-choice
supporters who are energized by being part of this historic event. Buy
your tickets early. For New York information, visit
http://www.nyrcrc.org. For Massachusetts, contact www.rcrcofma.org
However you travel, we hope you will be on the National Mall in time for
the RCRC Prayerfully Pro-Choice Interfaith Service, starting at 9:30
a.m.
posted by KHR+ at 3:53 PM
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