Wednesday's Words From Women

I’m writing to give my sincere gratitude for the help NAF has given me. I am a single mother of five children and my youngest child is only eight months old. I work hard to support them, and any unforeseen expenses are next to impossible for me to handle. Continuing this pregnancy would have had a tremendous financial impact on my family. Thank you very much for helping me.

--Submitted by Jaimee-Lee* through a member clinic

I would like to thank NAF for supporting me with this decision. When I called the NAF member clinic in Florida and found out how much the abortion was going to cost, I panicked. However, I reached out to NAF and their support calmed my nerves. Many people may think that this decision is wrong but I believe that you have to do what’s right for you. I thank you again for blessing me during this time.

--Submitted by Jaine* through a member clinic 

Over one-third of women of reproductive age have an abortion by the age of 45. However, women who have chosen abortion are often absent from the public debate. In order to break the silence surrounding abortion, we feature real stories from real women each Wednesday on our blog. If you would like to share your story with us or have it published on our blog, go to http://www.prochoice.org/pregnant/hotline/share.html.

U.S. Conference of Mayors Passes Pro-Choice Resolution

A group of mayors led a successful effort to pass a resolution in support of women's reproductive rights and funding for Planned Parenthood Saturday during the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

The non-partisan organization, made up of representatives from about 1,200 cities across the country, voted to pass a resolution opposing the numerous efforts by state and federal lawmakers to restrict women's access to abortion care and family planning services, including attempts to mandate ultrasounds before abortion care, defund Title X and Planned Parenthood, ban abortion care after 20 weeks, jeopardize access to birth control, compel the Internal Revenue Service to audit rape survivors who seek abortion care, and allow hospitals to refuse emergency abortion care to women. The mayors promised to fight back against anti-choice efforts in the future and speak out on behalf of their female constituents.

Resolution sponsors included Michael Bloomberg of New York City; Ed Lee of San Francisco; Mike McGinn of Seattle; Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles; Pedro Segarra of Hartford, Conn.; and Sam Adams of Portland, Ore.

“When it comes to reproductive health decisions, nobody knows better than an individual woman what is best for herself and her family,” said Bloomberg in a statement.

Statement of Vicki Saporta, President and CEO of the National Abortion Federation (NAF)

Today, I released the following statement: 

 

The National Abortion Federation (NAF) is the professional association of abortion providers in North America. NAF is a voluntary membership organization comprised of 400 clinics, hospitals and physicians’ offices in the United States, Canada and Mexico City. NAF does not own, operate, or staff medical centers. Our mission is to ensure safe, legal, and accessible abortion care, which promotes health and justice for women.

Abortion care is one of the safest and most commonly provided medical procedures in the United States. Despite this safety record, laws have been passed around the country to criminalize abortion providers and to make it more difficult for women to access abortion care.

Opponents of abortion care use questionable tactics like hoax patient visits with hidden cameras to make false claims about NAF and our members. These tactics are evident in the videos recently posted by Live Action. Live Action is known for targeting abortion providers and selectively editing their videos to put out false information.

Their most recent campaign focuses on the preference for a child of a particular gender. Gender discrimination is a serious issue – and it requires solutions that address the underlying issues that promote bias. Laws that are passed with the intent to reduce access to high quality abortion care do not address this issue. Countries striving to combat the problem of gender inequality have had success by implementing laws which address the root causes of gender inequality—including policies on access to health care, fair pay, education, ending violence against women, and expanding access to reproductive health care.

Since 1977, NAF members have provided safe, high-quality evidence-based medical care that women need and deserve. NAF supports women’s access to full, complete, and non-judgmental information about their reproductive health care.

Wednesday's Words from Women

I’m in school and my fiancé is in Afghanistan. Money is very tight right now and I just want to finish school, and get married before starting a family.

--Submitted by Kat* through a member clinic

I’m a 27-year-old single mother. I currently work part-time and I am in college to make a better life for my three-year-old daughter. I appreciate the help and support that I received. This will help me continue to live without struggling more than I already am. It will also help my daughter have a better chance of happiness because I can move forward. Thank you very much.

--Submitted by Mable* through a member clinic 

Over one-third of women of reproductive age have an abortion by the age of 45. However, women who have chosen abortion are often absent from the public debate. In order to break the silence surrounding abortion, we feature real stories from real women each Wednesday on our blog. If you would like to share your story with us or have it published on our blog, go to http://www.prochoice.org/pregnant/hotline/share.html.