With knowledge of the true practices of Planned Parenthood, Americans will recognize the harmful nature of the organization. With more education about the biotechnological threats that are upon us, Americans will recognize the moral dangers involved with these destructive procedures. Finally, knowing how our elected leaders can legally protect human life, Americans will recognize the importance of electing strong Pro-Life officials.
Please read this issue of the Pro-Life Update carefully to understand some of the challenges we now face and how you, as a Pro-Life activist, can help advance the Culture of Life. Please share this information with your family, friends and church congregations. Make copies. Spread the news.
Planned Parenthood’s Annual Report Reaffirms Commitment to Abortion
Planned Parenthood’s 2002-2003 Annual Report, entitled “Tell Your Story, Change the World,” dons a cover of smiling children and babies. Ironically, Planned Parenthood remains the nation’s largest abortion chain. They now have 125 affiliates, 866 “health centers,” and “a presence in all 50 states.”
In 2002, 227, 375 abortions were reported as performed at Planned Parenthood clinics--an increase of over 14,000 reported abortions from the previous year. Their presence and continued propaganda on the importance of abortion has enabled them to perform 17% of all abortions in America, or one out of every six.
Many people still believe that Planned Parenthood provides much-needed medical services. However, their extensive involvement in and promotion of abortion overshadows what other services they may provide. Planned Parenthood harms and destroys more women and families than any other organization in the United States.
In their current advertisement, Planned Parenthood mentions their commitment to parenthood, but abortion clearly receives much more attention. They classified only 15,860 clients as prenatal in 2002, yet they performed over 200,000 abortions. Therefore, only 6.5% of those clients seeking pregnancy-related services received prenatal care, while the rest received abortions.
Regarding adoption services, Planned Parenthood has an even worse record. They did not report any adoption services and only 1,963 adoption referrals in 2002. That translates to almost 116 abortions at Planned Parenthood clinics for every adoption referral.
The abortion business is extremely lucrative. Planned Parenthood made over three quarters of a billion dollars in 2002. Although they do not specify the revenue made from abortions specifically, based on the information given by the Alan Guttmacher Institute (Planned Parenthood’s research branch), abortions alone generated at least $84.5 million (and this is a conservative estimate).
Even worse, Planned Parenthood receives funding through the government (our tax money). About one third of their income ($254 million) came from “Government Grants and Contracts.” Although some of the funds are not allowed to fund abortions, each dollar they receive for their other services frees up more of their money for their abortion business.
President’s Council on Bioethics Releases Draft Report
The President’s Council on Bioethics has just released a draft report (“Biotechnology and Public Policy: Biotechnologies Affecting the Beginnings of Human Life”) on such biotechnological issues as “farming” fetuses for body parts, buying and selling human embryos, and patenting human beings. The Council’s Chairman Dr. Leon Kass decries these practices: “The age of human cloning has apparently arrived: today, cloned blastoctysts for research, tomorrow cloned blastocysts for baby-making.”
According to the Council, the types of practices listed above should be banned to protect the dignity of human procreation. Many cloning proponents, however, have stressed the need to clone individuals, let them develop to an early stage, and then perform medical experiments on them. Scientists in South Korea announced on Februray 12th that they have successfully ‘grown’ a human embryo to the blastocyst stage, enabling them to harvest stem cells; Seoul National University is the first to make this breakthrough.
New Jersey has just enacted a law on cloning that allows these fetus farms. The bill permits the cloning of human embryos for research but bans cultivating a cloned human “through the egg, embryo, fetal and newborn stages.” Therefore, in New Jersey, scientists are allowed to create and gestate human beings as long as they kill them for their cells and organs before they are born, including throughout all nine months of pregnancy.
Calling attention to the reality of these biological threats, the Council stated, “A woman and her womb should not be regarded or used as a piece of laboratory equipment, as an ‘incubator’ for growing research materials, or as a ‘field’ for growing and harvesting body parts.”
The Council stood unanimously in opposition to fetus farms, even though they hold varying views on abortion and cloning. Pro-cloning research advocates are misleading families with loved ones suffering from diseases by promising cures and symptom relief from stem cell research. The public must learn the value of adult stem cell research and advocate that public resources be directed to promoting and perfecting the use of adult stem cell research, which has provided symptom relief and some breakthroughs without creating or killing human embryos—such as will now be done in New Jersey.
Gov. Jeb Bush Continues His Pro-Life Support
Governor Jeb Bush has been a strong advocate for life. Florida has been faced with legal battles regarding the lives of innocent humans both at the beginning and end of life.
Pro-Lifers have been monitoring the case of Terri Schindler-Schiavo, who suffered severe brain damage in 1990. Since that time, her husband has been lobbying to remove her feeding tube. The fight has gone through the courts; one court order allowed him to remove her tube and thus condoned her death through starvation and dehydration. Thankfully, Gov. Bush intervened, and by working with the Florida legislature, passed legislation to allow Terri’s feeding tube to be reinserted. “Terri’s Law” passed and has protected her, yet the debate still continues.
Gov. Bush also played an instrumental role in the case of a young, severely mentally disabled woman (known only as J.D.S.) who was raped in a group home and became pregnant. Circuit Judge Lawrence R. Kirkwood appointed a guardian to help make medical decisions for this young mother, including the fate of her unborn child. (She did eventually give birth to a healthy baby girl.) Gov. Bush is now working with Democratic State Rep. Sandra Murman to secure legislation to allow “legal guardians to be appointed for fetuses whose mothers are incapacitated.” He has proven his dedication to the sanctity of human life and to those who have no voice.
