LifeLines
March, 2000
Rochester Area Right To Life
LifeLines
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Rochester Area Right To Life |
LifeLines is the newsletter of the Rochester Area Right to Life. Older, complete issues in print are available in the Rochester office. These articles have been selected from the issue in print.
Volume 28 Issue 5 March, 2000
| NEW YORK STATE PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY ELECTION: Tuesday, March 7th; 12:00
to 9:00 PM |
Presidential candidates on abortion
Following are responses to the 2/1/00 Associated Press question: Should abortion laws be changed and, if so, what is the most pressing change that should be made? Responses below are from only those still candidates as of 2/17/00.
Democrats:
Bill Bradley: "I believe that the decision whether or not to terminate a pregnancy is a private one between a woman and her doctor. We must protect that privacy and keep abortion safe and legal. My support for a woman's right to choose - regardless of economic circumstance - is clear, resolute and unwavering, and it has never changed during all my years in public life. The only change I would support is eliminating restrictions on the use of family planning assistance to developing countries.''
Al Gore: "A woman's right to choose is fundamental. That decision should be made by the woman, in consultation with those she trusts. Abortion must remain legal and safe - and increasingly rare. I support the Freedom of Choice Act, which would codify the Roe v Wade decision into federal law so that states could not limit or chip away rights provided by the decision.''
Reform:
Pat Buchanan: No response.
Republicans:
George W. Bush: "I support the goal of a Human Life Amendment with exceptions for rape, incest and to save the life of the mother. Recognizing there is currently insufficient support for that amendment in Congress and the states, I will provide leadership to take positive, practical steps to reduce the number of abortions: ending partial-birth abortion, helping women in crisis through maternity group homes, encouraging adoption, promoting abstinence education, and passing laws requiring parental notification and waiting periods.''
Alan Keyes: "We should overturn Roe v. Wade and pass a Human Life Amendment to the Constitution protecting the constitutional rights of our posterity.''
John McCain: "Yes. Roe v Wade should be overturned and abortion should be illegal except in cases of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is in danger. As a pro-life Republican, I believe that until … the court reverses its decision in Roe v Wade or public support can win the day for a constitutional amendment we have an obligation to reduce the number of abortions performed as much as possible; to foster public opinion and individual responsibility that rejects abortion as birth control …; to promote abstinence among youth; to change cultural attitudes about abortion; to facilitate alternatives to abortion including adoption; and to address the obstacles facing women so that they will choose life for their unborn child rather than selecting an abortion. The most pressing change must be ending partial-birth abortions.''
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She is the infamous Jane Roe of the Roe v Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion on demand in the United States. She is now active in the pro-life movement. Come hear her compelling story on THURSDAY, MARCH 2ND 5 PM at Brighton Town Hall or
7 PM; Bldg 8; Room 100; Monroe Community College Sponsored by: |
The clear case against partial-birth abortion
With the U.S. Supreme Court now poised to hear its first abortion case in 8 years, … it is clear abortion will be a high-profile issue in the coming months.
Despite almost constant media attention, understandable confusion still exists about what American abortion law says, and what American abortion practice is. What's worse, candidates who claim to be against abortion are content to express vague opposition to Roe, without taking the time to explain the decision and why it is worth opposing. This is unfortunate. Every appearance is an occasion to inform the public about the present legal reality and our shared obligation to respond to it. Candidates might mention the following:
First, abortion is legal for any reason during all nine months of pregnancy, …Anyone with a public platform should be informing audiences of this, since most Americans don't know, much less support, our present abortion policy, (which is) … the most extreme in the Western world.
While American law …is a combination of state statutes and federal law, the legal status of abortion is based on U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The 1973 Roe v Wade decision is the most cited case, … it announced a federal constitutional "right" to abortion. But it was Roe's companion case, Doe v Bolton, that established the scope of this new right.
Doe held that abortion must remain legally available to women at any stage in pregnancy for so-called "health" reasons. Health was broadly defined to encompass anything "relevant to the well-being of the patient . . .including all factors - physical, emotional, psychological, familial and the woman's age." Thus, health became the exception that swallows the rule. By this definition, pregnancy … becomes a health justification for abortion. In addition, the one who performs and gets paid for the abortion determines whether the abortion is needed for health reasons, creating an obvious conflict of interest.
Statements that abortion is legal only in the first three months of pregnancy are false, as are statements that a particular state does not allow abortions beyond a certain point. The legality of even the latest abortions is guaranteed by the Supreme Court's expansive health definition in Doe.
… Abortion advocates now complain only about abortion access, not legality. As Judge Boggs of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stated in reviewing Ohio's partial-birth abortion ban: "At oral argument, counsel for the abortionists asserted their position that these legal principles pose no barrier to any woman seeking an abortion at any time for any purpose." Ohio was the first of 30 states to enact a ban on partial birth abortion. But courts have invalidated almost all such bans, leaving human infants unprotected from abortion even during delivery.
Second, abortion on demand throughout pregnancy …came from our judiciary, which is highly supportive of abortion on demand. But it is to the American public that candidates must appeal. Candidates should remember that almost every opinion poll shows citizen support for protecting the child in pregnancy, as do the many state laws on abortion.
Third, the real goal of the pro-life effort is to protect and care for both mother and child: not the child to the exclusion of the mother, nor the mother to the exclusion of the child. This is not impossible. Indeed, healthy pregnancy is instructive: Mother and child thrive together. They also suffer together. That abortion is destructive to women as well as children is now well established . According to Dr. Joel Brind, of New York's Baruch College, the link between abortion and breast cancer is now undisputed. Reports of physical injuries and deaths at clinics are already alarmingly common. In a single three-year period, for example, two women (Lisa Bardsley and Lou Anne Herron), died from abortions at the Woman's A to Z Clinic in Phoenix. And clinics themselves have pamphlets detailing post-abortion problems, including guilt and depression.
Abortion is … a fundamentally destructive act. It destroys not just a child, but a part of the child's mother as well. The authentic pro-life effort therefore helps mothers as well as infants.
Finally, abortion is a question of human rights, and should be discussed as such. Human rights exist before and beyond government: They do not vary with location, nor do they depend on citizenship. Yet abortion advocates insist we accept the destruction of some human beings solely because of their location: They live within their mothers. (It is no small irony that nature placed the human child there precisely for protective purposes.) Millions of Americans have reacted to abortion just as anyone would to the dismemberment of a newborn infant – because abortion is the very same thing, only occurring within the womb rather than outside it.
If ever our law and culture are to protect mother and child in pregnancy, it will be because the nation as a whole understands why this should be so. That requires persuasion, compassion and leadership … of candidates. It is time for them to actually make the pro-life case.
Teresa R. Wagner , an attorney and policy analyst for life and human rights issues at Family Research Council.US Census, is the daughter of Rochester’s Judge John Manning Regan and sister of attorneys John Regan and Michael Regan. Prolife Infonet; 1/25/00
Rochester Area Right to Life Committee, Inc. Education Fund |
Editor’s Note: LIFE-LINES, a publication of RARTL Committee, Inc.
Education Fund, will bring you news/information about candidates and elections during
Election 2000. Our goal is to inform you about candidates’ views and election
happenings as they pertain to the life issues of abortion, euthanasia, infanticide.
Endorsements of candidates for election are done by the RARTL Political Action Committee
PAC and not by the RARTL Education Fund. RARTL PAC’s endorsements will be
given and publicized after all primaries and conventions are concluded.
Presidential Primary Elections Tuesday, March 7th from 12:00 to 9:00 PM
Gore given pro-abortion endorsement
Kate Michelman. President of the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, (NARAL) appeared with Al Gore on 2/15/00. She gave Gore the NARAL endorsement for President. She said Gore did not seek the endorsement and didn't know the group was thinking of making one. NARAL decided to back Gore to turn attention away from the race for the Democrat nomination and towards the Republican presidential primary. The endorsement will give Gore a boost in the race for the Democratic nomination with former NJ Sen. Bill Bradley, also pro-abortion.
Gore said he was grateful for the endorsement. "We cannot play political games with an issue as fundamental as a woman's right to choose,'' …"As president,… I will make sure that that right to choose is never threatened, never weakened and never taken away.'' Bradley was disappointed by the news. He recalled NARAL gave him a 99% rating for his pro-abortion voting record when he represented New Jersey in the Senate.
NARAL pledged to put its 300,000+ members/resources behind Gore now and in the general election if he wins the nomination. Life Infonet ertelt@prolifeinfo.org 2/15
Gore again misrepresents his abortion history
National Right to Life Committee wrote that Vice President Al Gore, "has… badly misrepresented his pro-life voting record in the US House of Representatives." In a New Hampshire debate with Bill Bradley, Gore said, "I have always supported a woman's right to choose," adding: "early in my career I wrestled with the question of what kinds of exceptions should be allowed to the … rule that Medicaid should … pay for this procedure."
During Gore's years in the House, 1977-84, he compiled an 84% rating in NRLC scorecards. Reviews of National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) scorecards show Rep. Gore voted with NARAL's position 20% of the time.
Among other pro-life votes, Gore cast many votes for the Hyde Amendment to completely ban Medicaid funding of abortion, except to save the life of the mother. Twice in 1977 he voted to weaken the ban with rape and incest exceptions but later consistently voted against adding exceptions to the ban (other than life-of-mother). On 12/6/79, he voted against a Waxman amendment to add rape and incest exceptions to a proposal to permanently ban Medicaid funding of abortion, except to save the life of the mother.
In 1984 Gore voted for the Siljander Amendment to declare "… ‘person’ shall include unborn children from the moment of conception under the Civil Rights Act of 1984. Gore has given 3 contradictory "explanations" for this vote…. For a discussion of the amendment see: Gore Can't Get His Story Straight on 1984 Vote to Define Unborn Children As Persons from Conception www.nrlc.org/Whatsnew/gorestraight.html NRLC also has a collection of letters sent by Congressman Gore to constituents, expressing pro-life statements. For example, in an 8/22/84 letter, he wrote, "I have strongly opposed federal funding of abortions. In my opinion, it is wrong to spend federal funds for what is arguably the taking of a human life. . . . It is my deep personal conviction that abortion is wrong. . . . Let me assure you that I share your belief that innocent human life must be protected and I have an open mind on how to further this goal."
National Right to Life Press Release, 1/27/00
Bush given pro-life endorsement
National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) and South Carolina Citizens for Life (SCCL) officials announced their endorsement of George W. Bush for president. They also announced that their PACs were launching radio ads … urging pro-life voters to oppose John McCain and vote for George Bush.
"George Bush is a strongly pro-life governor who has taken a consistent pro-life stand throughout the campaign," said Carol Tobias, director of NRLC’s PAC. "John McCain has made many conflicting statements on abortion that signify he would not be a strong pro-life president."
NRLC and SCCL PACs have been criticizing McCain’s statement that he would oppose reversal of Roe v. Wade "in the short term, or even the long term," and his support for federal funding of experiments using the body parts of aborted babies.
The radio ad "If You Don't Want Warren Rudman, Don't Vote for John McCain." focuses on the national chairman of McCain's campaign, Warren Rudman. McCain says he may appoint Rudman U.S. Attorney General. In the ad, two pro-life voters discuss Rudman's pro-abortion views. They agree that they do not want Rudman as Attorney General, helping to pick Supreme Court justices. In his 1996 memoirs, Rudman took credit for helping prevent reversal of Roe v. Wade, and wrote that he would have voted to defeat the nomination of pro-life Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas…
The ad points out Rudman compiled "a very pro-abortion voting record'' in the Senate and has since characterized Christian conservative groups as including "anti-abortion zealots'' and"bigots.''…On Feb.19 McCain accused NRLC of turning abortion into a business. He said he was confident that pro-life advocates "… around the country" would support his presidential bid.
Carol Tobias, Director of NRLC’s PAC said Bush would make a "wonderful pro-life president. Governor Bush has maintained a strong, consistent pro-life position, as governor and throughout this campaign"'. She said the committee did not make an endorsement until now because there were other pro-life candidates in the race. "… as the number of Republican candidates dwindled, polls show that this is …a two-person race with only George Bush and John McCain having a realistic chance to win the nomination.''
Former ambassador Alan Keyes, running far behind Bush and McCain criticized McCain as too weak against abortion. NRLC's Doug Johnson said…Bush's record is clearly superior to McCain's. "He has supported overturning Roe vs. Wade in the form of a constitutional amendment to protect the unborn child. He has articulated a policy that is strongly pro-life. …he has said he would appoint … constructionists to the Supreme Court,''
Johnson indicated McCain has drifted too closely to the political posturing done by abortion advocates. ''Over the last 1½ years, McCain has positioned himself with those who see abortion as a 'necessary evil,' and that is a position we very much disagree with, and think it is something the pro-life movement would be foolish to ignore,''
In 8/99, McCain told the editorial board of the San Francisco Examiner that he would not support the repeal of Roe v. Wade, …"because in the short term ''it would force X number of women in America to (undergo) illegal and dangerous operations.'' McCain has said that, unlike Bush, he supports adding the exceptions of rape, incest and danger to the life of the mother to the anti-abortion plank in the GOP platform.
McCain has suggested that pro-life Congressman Henry Hyde (R-IL) supports his position. That statement prompted a sharp rebuke from the pro-life champion. Hyde is in a Bush radio ad saying that he is "totally opposed'' to the changes proposed by McCain and that he supports Bush's position."
Associated Press, BostonGlobe, 2/9/00
They yawn, suck their thumbs, get hiccups, and yet some insist they aren’t alive
Bauer endorses McCain; Dr. Dobson disapproves
On 2/15, former GOP presidential candidate Gary Bauer endorsed Sen. John McCain in his bid for the White House, calling him the "best shot" to win. Bauer's endorsement came at a crucial time for McCain, who has taken heat from NRLC, Alan Keyes, Phyllis Schlafley and other pro-life leaders for waffling on pro-life issues.
Bauer acknowledged that McCain's position on abortion was "less absolute than his own." Meanwhile, speaking as a private individual, not as president of Focus on the Family, Dr. James Dobson disagreed with Bauer's endorsement of Senator McCain.
"McCain has offered no assurances that he intends to appoint a pro-life running mate or pro-life justices to the U.S. Supreme Court. He voted for pro-abortion Stephen Breyer and pro-abortion ACLU-activist Ruth Bader Ginsburg for that Court and for David Satcher for Surgeon General, who supports partial-birth abortion. McCain also voted in support of President Clinton to expand fetal-tissue research," Dodson said.
With "these concerns about McCain, it is difficult to understand how Gary Bauer can support him 'with great pride and with absolutely no reservation,'" Dobson's statement was not intended to imply his endorsement of anyone else's candidacy for the presidency -- simply to clarify his lack of support for Senator McCain. Pro-Life Infonet, Dr. Dobson Press Release, 2/17/00
Gore and Bradley continue fight over abortion
Bracing for more questions about his past voting record on abortion, pro-abortion Vice President Al Gore conceded his position has shifted …and accused pro-abortion candidate Bill Bradley of trying to use the issue to drive a wedge between Democrats. Pro-Life Infonet; 2/13/00
Bradley and Gore wives join fight
As their husbands campaigned, Tipper Gore and Ernestine Bradley made a joint appearance on 1/20 to reaffirm their husbands' support for abortion on demand. Both … spoke at a NARRAL dinner commemorating the 27th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe vs. Wade decision…
Mrs. Bradley presented her husband as a staunch abortion rights supporter whose opinion has never varied . "Bill has always said that a woman's right to choose is an issue that is so important that we must never play politics with it.''
Gore, also an abortion rights supporter, has been criticized by abortion activists for voting against pro-abortion legislation 20 years ago as a congressman. Mrs. Gore gave no word that he had been anything but an abortion supporter. "We have to stand together to keep the White House pro-choice. My husband is fully committed to our cause.''
Both introduced their husbands’ video messages…Bradley and his wife offered a question-and-answer session. He voiced support for women's rights between light answers about his favorite moments and what he most admired in his wife. Gore, flanked by an American flag, cautioned that if he and President Clinton hadn't won in 1992, legalized abortion could have been outlawed. "This could very well be the anniversary of Roe's demise,'' he said. ertelt@prolifeinfo.org; 1/21/00
Fleeting Thought
Abortion = Violence to women and children
Clinton says Bush would try to scrap abortion ruling
On 1/22/00, President Clinton said that George W. Bush, if elected president, would attempt to scrap the Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision making abortion legal. Clinton also said:
"There is absolutely no question in my mind that whether Roe v Wade is preserved or scrapped depends on what happens in the presidential race and to pretend otherwise is naive in the extreme."
George W. Bush, … campaigning in Iowa said
"Roe v Wade was a reach, over stepped the constitutional bounds"
Clinton said he had appointed two justices to the US Supreme Court and believed the next president would appoint…more. The high court is currently controlled by a 5-4 conservative majority.
He said he appreciated Bush’s candor in publicly saying he doesn’t believe in Roe v Wade because it shows "significant differences" between Republicans and his own Democratic Party which has always supported abortion rights. Steve Holland; Daily News; 1/22/00
THE PRESIDENTIAL RECORD ON ABORTION
| Bush/Quayle Administration | Clinton/Gore Administration | |
| Roe v. Wade Abortion Decision | President Bush urged the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade | President Clinton urged Supreme Court to uphold Roe v Wade |
| Federal Abortion-on Demand Law | President Bush said he would veto the so-called "Freedom of Choice Act," a bill that would have prohibited state restriction on abortion | The Clinton/Gore Administration endorsed the so-called "Freedom of Choice Act" |
| Taxpayer Funding of Abortion | President Bush vowed, "I will veto any legislation that weakens current law or existing regulations" re-stricting abortion" – and he did so, vetoing 10 bills that contained pro-abortion provisions | The Clinton/Gore Administration urged Congress to make abortion part of a mandatory national health insurance "benefits package" forcing all taxpayers to pay for virtually all abortions |
| Military Abortions | President Bush did not allow abortions at US military facilities anywhere | President Clinton ordered US military facilities to provide abortions |
| Abortion Counseling and Referral | President Bush prohibited 4,000 federally funded family planning clinics from counseling and referring for abortions | President Clinton ordered federally funded family planning clinics to counsel and refer for abortion |
| Use of Tissue from Aborted Babies | The Bush Administration refused to fund experimentation or transplants using tissue from aborted babies | The Clinton/Gore Administration ordered federal funding of experiments using tissue from aborted babies |
| Chemical Abortions | The Bush/Quayle Administration prohibited importation of the French abortion pill, RU 486 | President Clinton ordered his appointees to facilitate the introduction of RU 486 in the US |
| The United Nations Population Fund and Abortion | President Bush vetoed US funding of the UNFPA citing the agency’s participation in the management of China’s forced abortion program | President Clinton ordered resumption of funding to the pro-abortion UNFPA which participates in the management of China’s forced abortion program |
| Promotion of Abortion Overseas | President Bush enforced the "Mexico City Policy" which pro-hibited US-funded organizations from performing abortions or trying to repeal the pro-life laws of developing nations | Clinton restored US funding to pro-abortion organizations. The Clinton/Gore Administration declared abortion to be a "fundamental right of all women" and ordered US ambassadors to lobby foreign governments in support of abortion |
information compiled by
NATIONAL RIGHT TO LIFE
Education Trust Fund
America's greatest resource is …people. This belief is enshrined in our founding documents, in which human life, is affirmed as the first inalienable right… From … 3 million colonists …we have grown to 270 million. With that great increase in population has come a cornucopia of prosperity.
Comparing … America 1900 with … America of 2000 confirms the link between population and prosperity (US Census Bureau, "1999 US Census Bureau Statistical Abstract: Compendium for the Millennium," December 1999). At the turn of the last century, the US had a population of 76 million, …average life span was 47.As our population boomed … so did life-spans, scientific innovation and entrepreneurial activity. Today America numbers 270 million, the average life span is 77,… Entering the new millennium, the US Census Bureau report makes clear, America has never been so populous, productive and healthy. America's farmland, …and millions of farmers continue to set records in yield per acre and total yield. New scientific discoveries have paved the way for longer, healthier lives, and have helped cut death rates in half from 17.2 people per 1,000 per year in 1900, to 8.60 per 1,000 per year in 1997.
…American family size has shrunk from 4.8 persons to a low 2.6 persons in 1996. Declining birthrates and increasing life expectancies have combined to propel average age of the population upward. The percentage of Americans aged 65 and over is rapidly increasing, and will grow from current 16.5% to 24.3% by 2020. By 2050 America will be … grayer, with1/3rd of the entire population over 60 years of age. The most troubling portent for America's future is our … falling birthrate.
We are no longer having enough children to replace ourselves. For the first time in … history, our nation is faced with the … real prospect of population decline.
By 2020, the average number of children born per woman is projected to decline to 1.5 (1998 UN Revision, World Population Prospects, 413 [low variant projection]). As a result …America's population is projected to begin declining about 2030.
Those who argue that a demographic decline will not lead to a social and economic implosion ought to visit…Europe, where the most vibrant sector of the economy deals with death.… mortuaries and cemeteries are doing a booming business, … maternity wards and the preschools stand empty.
Americans are faced with a choice.
Will we remain open to a further increase in our numbers…new blood…or will we condemn ourselves (and our children) to a gray and declining future?
Above excerpted from article written by Steve Ertelt; transmitted on Pro-Life Infonet 1/25/00 and Population Research Institute's Weekly Briefing, 1/7/00
Dr. Nathanson’s testimony on reproductive technologies
Dr. Bernard Nathanson, 73, a co-founder of the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL), has become a leading pro-life advocate. Here are excerpts from his speech on the topic given on 2/10 before congressional staff.
Partial-birth abortion is not an abortion at all. Abortion is defined as the separation of a mother from the fetus before 20 weeks. Most of these so-called operations are performed at 28 to 30 weeks. I know one of the doctors who performs these operations. They are really infanticides. He has told me… 80% of the operations he does are done after 30 weeks when someone, the mother or the doctor, discovers things are not going right with the pregnancy. They do an ultrasound and find a congenitally defective baby . . . and … the mother elects to have the procedure done.
What I'd advocate is what is done in England by law; that every pregnant woman have an ultrasound at 18 weeks. That may not cut the rate of abortion by much, but at least it would cut … so-called partial-birth abortions down, and it leaves the mother more time to make up her mind It allows more time for pro-life people to do the appropriate counseling to allow her to carry the pregnancy to term and … have the congenital defect repaired.
Assisted reproductive technology is one of the hottest areas in modern medicine The first baby born in this country as a result of in-vitro fertilization was in 1981. In 1997, the last year for which we have any figures, there were 24,000 babies born of in-vitro fertilization. This brings up the question as to whether infertility is a disease. Is it a medical disease to not become pregnant?
There is a very large market in frozen embryos. There are about 50,000 embryos in various cryobanks across the country. What are we to do? Freezing can only preserve an embryo five or six years. Some entrepreneurs have the answer: Sell them. One … reporter showed that if you go to Columbia University, you can tell them what kind of baby you want, matching your physique, your ethnic and educational background, and they will pick out a frozen embryo that perfectly matches what you want and sell it to you and implant the embryo in the womb of your wife or girlfriend for all of $2,750. . . .
There is technology, e.g. posthumous sperm removal. If a man dies and the widow wants to become pregnant, within a reasonable period of time, the urologist puts a needle into the testes, pulls out some sperm and fertilizes her egg. So the dead man is a new father, reversing normal familial relationships/procedures . . .
In Japan, they have now an artificial womb. You do not have to put the embryo any longer into a human womb. . You remember "Brave New World," written in 1932, in which [author Aldous Huxley] has predicted everything that has come to pass. He said, 'As political and economic freedom diminishes, sexual freedom can compensatorily be increased.'
Cloning has gotten completely out of hand, and it's potentially dangerous. Dolly, the lamb …was created in Aberdeen, Scotland, has shown signs in its cells of premature aging. Nobody knows why. The Japanese have now cloned a bull from a cloned bull. They are cloning clones until the land is full of cloned bulls. These bulls, by the way, are fertile. They have cloned a calf from the ear cells of an adult cow, which means you don't need to use reproductive cells anymore. You can take any cell in the body, even from the inside of the mouth, and clone. . . .The South Koreans have admitted they are cloning human beings and they are continuing the practice. Washington Times, 2/10/00
Pro-lifers excluded from bankruptcy protection
On 2/2/00 "The U.S. Senate voted, 80–17, to prevent people who have violated laws that limit protests around abortion clinics from filing bankruptcy to avoid fines or civil judgments against them. Only abortion protestors are covered by the amendment. The amendment to the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1999 (S.625) would stop debtors from shedding, through bankruptcy proceedings, debts incurred from violent acts at abortion clinics. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) proposed the amendment, which is …aimed at punishing pro-lifers for their speech."
The amendment’s timing was seen as a Democratic effort to give Al Gore a showcase vote on abortion. He flew from NY to be present for the expectedly close tally and flew on a commercial aircraft for the first time since becoming Vice-President. Many had two reasons for voting for the Schumer Amendment. Passing it made it unnecessary for Gore to come to cast a tie-breaking vote. Also, pro-life conservatives had been assured that the amendment would never survive House-Senate conference committee negotiations.
Passage of the bill coincides with the 40th anniversary of the Greensboro, N.C., sit-ins, where civil rights proponents sat at the Woolworth's lunch counter and demanded service regardless of race…." Unfortunately, because of abortion rights hysteria, the rights that made the Greensboro sit-ins possible are being eroded for pro-life speakers. http://www.frc.org/subscribe/docs/lt02b.html & Human Events; 2/18/00; Legal Facts; frc.org/subscribe/docs/lt02b.html
| Pro-life Things You Can Do Ö Encourage son or daughter to ask teacher to schedule a pro-life speaker and/or video Ö Write Letter to Editor to make positive, pro-life points or correct error in publication’s coverage of life issues |
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Jacquelyn Erbin, M.D. Mr. & Mrs. John B. Spiggle Lucille B. Maley John Englert |
Plan to hear Thursday, March 2nd |
(SHE WAS "JANE ROE" IN ROE V WADE) at Brighton Town Hall at 5 PM (or) |
Rochester Area Right to Life Committee, Inc. Please think of RARTL Education Fund when making your donation |
Congratulations to winners in 1999 Save-a-Baby Campaign:
A round of applause to all who participated in this campaign. Unborn babies and their mothers were the major victors. Campaign awards went to:
1st: Arlene Hodges: Lackawanna
2nd Alice Cantwell: Albany
3rd James Lynch: Elmhurst
Many thanks to all who participated.
For the names of your Congressional Representative, NY State Senator
/Assemblymember and County Legislator:
*Check blue pages of your phone book under your County’s name. Find Board of
Elections or Election Board, place a call, give your street address. Names,
local addresses and phone numbers of all of the above legislators will be given to you. or
*Call 1-800-for vote and ask for the names and phone numbers of your state Senate
and Assembly representatives or
*Contact your public library.
Legislative activity will start soon in Washington & Albany
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT |
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| US House of Rep. Hon. _____ US House of Rep. Washington, DC 20515 1-202-224-3121 |
President Hon. William Clinton 1600 Pennsylvania Ave Washington, DC 20500 1-202-456-1414 |
US Senate Hon. _____ US Senate Washington, DC 20510 1-202-224-3121 |
NEW YORK STATE LEGISLATURE |
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| NY State Assembly Hon. _____ |
Governor Hon. George E. Pataki
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NY State Senate Hon. _________ |
Statewide Bill Status Hotline: 1-800-342-9860 |
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In Albany, work has begun on the state budget. In Washington, pro-life work begun in 1999 is being completed. Please keep informed and in contact with your legislators.
| Do what you can, With what you have, Where you are. -- Theodore Roosevelt |
"TO KEEP A LAMP BURNING, KEEP PUTTING OIL IN IT." Mother Teresa |
United Way donors will be able to make contributions to Rochester Area Right to Life Committee, Education Fund. These donations are crucial for maintaining/expanding area pro-life education efforts. A percentage of the total donations is kept by the United Way to cover their administrative costs.
To support Rochester Area Right to Life Committee, Inc. Education Fund in the 2000 United Way Campaign:
1. Request a 2000 Donor Choice Designation Form when your employer gives you
a pledge card.
2. In the section entitled Other Eligible Organizations you will see Rochester
Area Right to Life Committee, Inc. Education Fund, numbered 1087.
3. On the Designation Form, Choice #3 should
be completed to identify (A) RARTL by its name and number and (B) the amount
you want RARTL to receive from you.
4. Return both the Pledge Card and the Designation Card to the person specified by
your employer.
We recognize that the United Way Campaign collects and provides funds for many valuable services. We also believe that activities affirming life itself are an essential core. In advance we thank all who direct their United Way donations to support RARTL’s pro-life efforts.
Please become a prayer partner by spending 5-10 minutes daily in prayer about life issues. We hope this partnership will fill 24 hours of each day to have a prayer shield over the area. Please join in the following suggested weekly prayer themes for
March 12: Americans to remember the words of Former Pennsylvania Governor Robert
Casey: "…we know that the fate of one life touches all of us."
March 19: the medical profession’s understanding that the human race cannot
survive its deliberate destruction of its young
March 26: recognition that child abuse was not reduced by legal abortion and abused
children need help
April 2: all parents struggling with an unexpected pregnancy that they may not
sacrifice their unborn child to the gods of convenience and pride
April 9: continuous prayers for all who have been involved in abortion
April 16: truths about abortion spoken courageously by public officials, e.g.
Wisconsin Governor Thompson: "The partial-birth abortion is a gruesome, abhorrent way
to take a life."
You are welcome to remember a deceased loved one by making a memorial contribution to the Rochester Area Right to Life Committee Education Fund. Your tax-deductible contribution can also commemorate birthdays, new arrivals, or other special occasions. A card in your name will be sent to the family/person you designate; contribution amount is confidential. Mail form and check, payable to RARTL Education Fund to RARTL; 675 Ling Road; Rochester, NY 14612
Would you like to receive LIFE-LINES by e-mail?
Call the RARTL Office; 716-621-4690
e-mail us at roch_rtl@juno.com
or
Read it on our website: www.righttolife.org
Life-Lines
Official Publication: Rochester Area Right to Life Committee, Inc.Education Fund
Suite 3; 675 Ling Road Rochester, NY 14612
(716) 621-4690 Third-class postage paid at Rochester, New York
Permit No. 1931 A non-profit organization
Volume 28: Issue 5 Price $10.00 per year
RARTL OFFICE HOURS
Tuesday 9 AM-7 PM; Wednesday & Thursday 9 AM - 5 PM
Or by appointment
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