ROEDER CONVICTED!

Dr. Tiller's killer was convicted of first degree murder today after less than 40 minutes of deliberation. For more details on the verdict click here and for NARAL Pro-Choice America’s statement click here.

While we applaud this decision we cannot forget what women's reproductive health lost on May 30th 2009, a kind, caring advocate who continued his work under the threat of death, a compassionate person who trusted women.

Call on CBS to Drop Focus on the Family Super Bowl Ad

Call on CBS to Drop Focus on the Family Super Bowl Ad
CBS cleared the way to subject nearly 100 million people to Focus on the Family’s extreme agenda by agreeing to air its new pro-life ad during the Super Bowl.
Focus on the Family has an unmistakable anti-choice, anti-birth-control, anti-sex-education, anti-gay agenda. If that wasn’t bad enough, its views on women are just plain insulting and dangerous. For example, its web site urges women facing an unintended pregnancy to seek “wise advice” because “the hormones and extreme emotions of pregnancy make reasonable decisions more difficult.”
We can’t just sit by while CBS lets Focus on the Family place a political ad during the Super Bowl, when millions of people are watching ads.
CBS still has time to change course if enough of us apply pressure. Urge CBS to drop Focus on the Family’s ad.
Sign the petition here: https://secure.prochoiceamerica.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=4143

I had an abortion.

Join an Intergenerational discussion Parents, teens, young adults, mentors and friends of First Universalist

Cutting across age, race, class and religion, the film unfolds personal narratives with intimate interviews, archival footage, family photos and home movies.
I Had an Abortion features 10 women — including famed feminist Gloria Steinem — who candidly describe experiences spanning seven decades, from the years before Roe v. Wade to the present day.

Fresh, moving, important…Muriel Rukeyser wrote, ‘If one woman told the truth about her life, the world would split open.’ [This film] gives us 10 truth-telling women, and splits the world open in as many ways.‛ Katha Pollitt, The Nation magazine

Sponsors: RSVP appreciated to: Sara mckru@comcast.net

7:00 pm
Friday
February 19, 2010
Free admission. Food will be served.
First Universalist Church
3400 Dupont Ave S
Minneapolis

Latest from the Choice Lobby Network

Feature: Happy 37th Anniversary, Roe!

In honor of the 37th anniversary of the passage of Roe v. Wade, RH Reality Check put together a video of pro-choice supporters answering the question, “What does choice mean to you?”

NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia Investigates CPCs

In Virginia, not unlike other states, drivers have the option of purchasing “Choose Life” anti –abortion license plates. A portion of the fees go to “Heartbeat International”, a Christian group that distributes money to Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) across the state. Questions were raised about whether or not these clinics were qualified to receive these funds. These questions were raised by NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia volunteers who went undercover and found out some startling facts (read a summary of the report here):

· 38 out of the 52 anti-abortion pregnancy centers in Virginia do not have medically trained or supervised personnel on staff
· Two-thirds of the centers provided "some degree of medically erroneous information."
· Fliers distributed were misleading and outdated
· Other false statements are highlighted by the investigators here.

Sadly, CPC funding is alive and well in Minnesota. In a recent article in the Minnesota Independent, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota, Linnea House, helped explain how your tax dollars are helping to pay for misinformation about reproductive health given by these CPCs. The large anti-choice organization, Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, is currently putting its weight behind legislation that would bring anti-choice plates to Minnesota.

Status Check: The Healthcare Debate

We all heard about the unexpected election of Republican Scott Brown to the Massachusetts Senate. Anti-choice leaders are praising this win and everyone is talking about Senator-Elect Brown’s impact on the passage of healthcare reform.

As it stands right now, both bills change the abortion status quo and many legislators are holding their votes hostage, waiting to see what the abortion language looks like in the final version.

Since it’s increasingly difficult to follow the differences between the two versions of the reform legislation, the Associated Press put together an interactive article to help you see how your healthcare would be impacted by each version of the bill. Also, to see how reform will affect women’s health specifically, check out this article.

Wait... WHAT?! Your Jaw Dropping Moment of the Week:

CBS, the network bringing us the SuperBowl this year, has a standard “No Advocacy in Advertising” policy which they are apparently more than willing to bend. During this year’s game, keep your eyes open for an anti-choice ad featuring 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam. RH Reality Check explains that CBS has previously rejected ads by MoveOn.org and NBC has rejected a PSA on marriage equality—apparently anti-choice ads don’t fall under the same “no advocacy” policy.

Video of the Week: Keith Olbermann Explains Implications of Scott Roeder’s Trial

The Wichita, Kansas trial of the man who has admitted he killed abortion doctor George Tiller last May began Friday, and confessed killer Scott Roeder could end up with just four to six years in prison. Southern Poverty Law Centers Mark Potok discusses the ramifications in this Keith Olbermann segment.

What does “Trust Women” Mean To You?

This is a post from one of our wonderful volunteers and friends:

In Sweet Agony on January 22, 2010 at 6:27 am

Today is NARAL’s Blog for Choice Day, and I will explain what “Trust Women,” the phrase for pro-choicers everywhere, means to me.
Last year, on Saturday mornings as I walked into work, a building which was in between an anti-choice, deceptive “Crisis Pregnancy Center” and a Planned Parenthood, I would witness the crowd of (mostly men) protesters hound the patients as they tried to get into the PP. I saw how the protesters tried to yell loud enough to penetrate the PP escort’s shielding umbrellas. I saw young men walking in circles with their rosaries, trying to make some sort of righteous statement of their all-holy, open showcase of prayer (which, last time I checked, Jesus seriously looked down upon?) See Matthew 6:5-6:
Matthew 6:5-6: “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men….when thou prayest, enter into thy closet and when thou has shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret….”
These people aren’t trying to help. They aren’t doing the will of God, either. They waste their time by yelling swear words, awful derogatory names, flashing their explicit fetus posters, bringing their own children to such a situation, twisting the words of God, when will they learn?
When I picked up my escorting vest, I joined the team of others who really, Trust Women. The fact that such phrase is needed is insane to me- is it suppose to be sarcastic? ‘trust half of the worlds’ population’? Unfortunately, it is not sarcastic. There are people out there who really believe their opinion is the law of the land, the moral standard everyone must follow, the most superior.
Trusting women means that whether one would or wouldn’t undergo this common medical procedure, one believes that there are a million reasons that women do get abortions and one ought not control another’s body as a slave to say what she can or cannot do with it.

Roe Celebration highlights!

Last night the Minnesota Choice Coalition along with 50 members of the Pro-Choice Community gathered last night to commemorate the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade at Azia Restaurant in Minneapolis. The event provided great opportunity for individuals to connect with other choice supporters in the community and reaffirm their commitment to reproductive justice.

During the event, members of the coalition presented calls to action for the attendees ranging from participating in Choice Lobby at the Capitol to broadcasting pro-choice issues via social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

“These events are great because we are able to gather as a strong collective and after we leave we need to have ways to keep our voices strong and these actions are an excellent way to do that.” said Linnea House, Executive Director of Pro-Choice Minnesota Foundation.

The Minnesota Choice Coalition consists of eight non-profit organizations dedicated to preserving reproductive freedom in Minnesota. While each member organization serves a vital and unique purpose in the pro-choice community, we collaborate to organize rallies, events, and education projects.

Member organizations include: Midwest Health Center for Women, Minnesota National Organization for Women, Minnesota Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota, National Council of Jewish Women, Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Pro-Choice Resources.

NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia is in todays Washigton Post

NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia made the front page of the Metro Section in today's Washington Post. The story wouldn't have happened without the affiliate's work exposing how anti-choice crisis pregnancy centers mislead women about their health-care options.
Questions raised about anti-abortion groups getting Va. license plate fee - washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com