Keep Choice in Mind
December 26, 2000
From The New York Times
By GLORIA FELDT
Like the country, I am a soul divided. While I embrace
President-elect Bush's promises to unite and heal the nation, I am
frightened by the assertions of Jerry Falwell, Gary Bauer and others who
seem to feel the president-elect owes more to their partisan interests than
he does to the American people. They have already made reproductive
rights a primary target of their ultraconservative social agenda.
So, too, has Senator John Ashcroft of Missouri, whom Mr. Bush just
nominated for attorney general. Mr. Ashcroft is a fierce opponent of
abortion, co-sponsoring legislation that would strip American women of
their constitutional right to an abortion. This includes his support for an
anti-abortion Human Life Amendment that would make exceptions to
save a mother's life, but not for rape, incest or a mother's health. He also
helped lead the fight for a bill, vetoed by President Clinton, to impose
criminal penalties on doctors performing so-called partial-birth abortions.
Mr. Bush has talked about wanting "a more civil society." Toward that
end, the nation needs an attorney general who will — through vigorous
enforcement of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act — take a
strong stand against those who harass or injure the medical people who
provide reproductive-health services.
If Mr. Bush truly wants to unite the nation, he will take into account that
the majority of Americans support reproductive rights. The near-even
split in electoral votes for president does not extend to every issue that
influenced the race. Al Gore, who is pro-choice, won the nation's
popular vote. Add the votes cast for Ralph Nader, who is also
pro-choice, and you have a decisive voter preference for reproductive
freedom.
At least two independent polls, one conducted by Greenberg Quinlan
Research and the other by Mark Mellman and Bill McInturff for the
Health Insurance Association of America, placed the right to legal
abortion a strong third among voter concerns, surpassed only by the
viability of Social Security and public education. Indeed, Bruce Shapiro,
former director of the monitoring group Supreme Court Watch, identified
reproductive choice as "probably the single largest issue pulling the swing
vote."
In his acceptance speech, Mr. Bush did not mention abortion, family
planning, sexuality education or any other issue of reproductive health
and rights. He did speak, however, about "respect for differences."
I hope he respects that we who are pro-choice arrive at our beliefs from
strong ethical and moral positions. I hope, too, he understands that when
Americans have differing moral positions on a matter as personal as
childbearing, the role of government is to stay out of people's
decision-making.
Since Mr. Bush talked of finding common ground, I also hope he will
support expanding young Americans' access to family planning and
medically accurate sexuality education. Both are constructive means of
preventing unintended pregnancies, thus reducing the need for abortion.
Finally, I urge pro-choice Republicans, especially those whose votes for
president were a matter of placing party loyalty over pro-choice
conviction, to work to persuade Mr. Bush not to appoint Supreme Court
justices who will overturn Roe v. Wade.
Our new president-elect has told us he wants every citizen to have
access to the American dream. So do we all. But for women truly to
have such access, they must first be able to exercise their legal rights.
And the rest of the nation must recognize their moral authority to
determine their own reproductive destinies.
Gloria Feldt is president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of
America.
nytimes.com |
