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Wednesday STOPP Report - July 15, 2009
by Marie Hahnenberg
Released July 15, 2009
In this issue:
Planned Parenthood’s “Summer, Sex and Spirits” fundraiser
PP breaks the rules, causes deaths, does a 180 and calls itself heroic
IRS tells Iowa group to stop protesting PP
Your First Amendment rights: Be not afraid to exercise them
Take the high road: Abstain from PP’s sex ed
‘Pope Benedict’s Charity in Truth’
Planned Parenthood’s “Summer, Sex and Spirits” fundraiser
On Thursday, July 23, Planned Parenthood of New York City Activist Council is hosting an event called “Summer, Sex and Spirits.”
If you were shocked by the event’s name, wait until you hear its location. This fundraiser will take place at New York City’s controversial Museum of Sex!
One of the museum’s permanent collections, the Ralph Whittington Collection, is described on the museum’s web site:
Ralph Whittington, a retired librarian at the Library of Congress, has been collecting pornography since the 1970s…Consisting of films, videos, magazines, books and related paraphernalia, this collection provides an extensive record of the adult industry over the past three decades.
The party offers an “open bar all night,” and VIP tickets include “early access to museum exhibits” and a “gift bag with some sexy contents,” such as a free intro class at a pole dancing school. Silent auction items include “boudoir photo shoots” and a “pole dancing party for 10.”
PP breaks the rules, causes deaths, does a 180 and calls itself heroic—for making medical abortions ‘safer’
Until 2006, Planned Parenthood was giving advice about administration of medical abortion-inducing drugs that contradicted Food and Drug Administration and drug manufacturer guidelines.
While the manufacturer of misopristol and the FDA recommended oral administration, PP advised women to take the medication intravaginally. At least two women died from infection after following the vaginally administered abortion pill regimen at PP facilities.
In 2006, following publicity about four maternal deaths resulting from this abortion-inducing drug regimen, PP did a 180 and began to recommend oral administration.
PP has now announced that its researchers are saying that taking antibiotics along with the abortion pill and taking it orally will make it safer for mothers to abort their children. The FDA, however, does not recommend prophylactic antibiotics as an adjunct to the abortion pill regimen and has never approved vaginal administration of the drugs as previously recommended by PP.
On its web site, the FDA says this about the four maternal deaths resulting from infection following medical abortions (from September 2003 to June 2005): “All four cases involved the off-label dosing regimen consisting of 200 mg of oral Mifeprex followed by 800 mcg of intravaginally placed misoprostol.” It further states, “The safety and effectiveness of other Mifeprex dosing regimens, including use of oral misoprostol tablets intravaginally, has not been established by the FDA.”
Ignoring its own complicity in deaths resulting from taking the medication intravaginally, a PP spokesperson is quoted in the Reuters article unveiling the “new” findings: “Our goal was to make a safe procedure even safer.” PP now portrays itself as heroic for partially reverting to the protocol it ignored for years, which resulted in the deaths of unsuspecting women.
As we reported in our 2008 Report on Planned Parenthood Facilities in the United States, PP has increased the number of facilities performing medical abortions by 61 in the last two years, thus increasing its abortion business without having to find more abortionists to commit surgical abortions.
IRS tells Iowa group to stop protesting PP
The Internal Revenue Service is attempting to force the Coalition for Life of Iowa to back off from Planned Parenthood – or else. Reportedly, the IRS is refusing to grant tax exemption unless the Coalition swears to limit its “picketing” and “protesting” of the nation’s largest abortion chain. This refers to the Coalition’s prayer vigils and sidewalk counseling outside of Planned Parenthood facilities.
“This is the way government oppression creeps into a society,” observed Judie Brown, president of American Life League. “It starts when the government targets, and attempts to intimidate and silence the grassroots dissenters who will not dance to the tune of the Obama administration’s radically pro-abortion policies.”
The Thomas More Society is requesting that the IRS stop its intimidation and prejudicial treatment, and said, “The repeated questioning of the Coalition suggests that the IRS may be denying or delaying tax-exempt status to an eligible organization based solely upon its religious affiliation and speech.”
The delay in granting tax-exempt status to the organization comes after repeated questioning from IRS officials regarding the organization’s educational, advocacy and religious activities – all of which clearly fall under the definition of “charitable,” under section 501(c)(3) of the tax code.
“This is not only political intimidation by the Internal Revenue Service, but it is a blatant violation of First Amendment rights,” Brown said. “Neither the Coalition for Life of Iowa nor any other educational and advocacy organization should be subjected to such discriminatory scrutiny. This is a clear case of government repression.”
“We call on all United States citizens who support free speech rights to contact their members of Congress and request that they tell the IRS to cease and desist,” Brown exhorted. “Since Congress authorizes the funding of the IRS, it has the power to withhold funds if the IRS continues these Gestapo-like tactics.”
Action Item: Contact your members of Congress and ask them to tell the IRS to cease its intimidation of the Coalition for Life of Iowa and to grant it tax-exempt status. Remind them that since Congress authorizes the funding of the IRS, it has the power to withhold funds if the IRS persists. For contact information for your representatives visit www.house.gov and www.senate.gov.
Your First Amendment rights: Be not afraid to exercise them
Conducting peaceful, prayerful activity in the public areas outside of Planned Parenthood facilities is your First Amendment right. Every week, thousands of pro-lifers across the country exercise this right with no problems and no interference with their rights.
A few important things to remember when exercising your First Amendment rights:
• You cannot infringe on other people’s rights.
• Stay off private property. This includes driveways, lawns and other areas around buildings. Remain on public property. You generally have the right to be on public property, which includes sidewalks, parks and other open public areas, as long as you do not block other members of the public from walking or driving through those areas.
• Do not block entrances. Federal law requires that abortion facility entrances and exits must remain clear at all times. Violating this law is a serious infraction, so steer clear of doorways and driveways.
• Inform your local police department of your intention to gather peacefully and prayerfully. Our experience is that most police departments will gladly work with you.
• If the police say you cannot gather in a particular public area, ask them to cite any local or state regulations prohibiting you from gathering. Ask for a written copy of those regulations. Read them carefully and make sure the police are interpreting them correctly. If you have any questions, check with your local attorney.
If you or your attorney have any questions on First Amendment issues, you can get expert advice from the Thomas More Law Center, headquartered in Michigan (734-827-2001); or the Thomas More Society, headquartered in Illinois (312-782-1680).
For more information on state regulations, be sure to visit our Map Room web site: http://www.stopp.org/maps/stateregulations.php.
Take the high road: Abstain from PP’s sex ed
Planned Parenthood of Waco/Central Texas is holding its notorious annual Nobody’s Fool conference today, and pro-lifers are planning to protest again this year. John Pisciotta, Director of Pro-Life Waco wrote the following:
There is so much to say about PP’s pernicious sexual agenda for our children. Here is just one point. In past years, PP has given the book, It’s Perfectly Normal, to children attending the conference. This book was rejected by a Washington State prison because the content was regarded as pornographic. It is tempting to send you some disgusting drawings from the book. However, I do not want to be accused of distributing pornography.
We hope to have dozens of allies standing at the Waco Convention Center (Washington Avenue & University Parks Drive) during two time slots. The first is 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. as the children are escorted into the Convention Center. The second is 11:45 to 12:30 p.m. as children depart the Convention Center. We will provide signs to hold with the message: “Take the high road. Just abstain from Nobody’s Fool.”
We’ll be sure to let you know how things go. Stay tuned for next week’s WSR, which will bring you the details.
‘Pope Benedict’s Charity in Truth’
Each day, Judie Brown, president of American Life League, writes a commentary on a current topic or situation of interest to pro-lifers. On July 8, she commented on Pope Benedict XVI’s new encyclical, Caritas in Veritate. The beautiful words written in this encyclical strengthen and inspire us to persevere in the battle against Planned Parenthood.
Below is an excerpt from Judie’s column titled, “Pope Benedict’s Charity in Truth”:
It is always with more than a little trepidation that I begin the task of wading through a papal encyclical. In the case of Caritas in Veritate, however, I could not put it down. Basing his insightful teaching about the requirements for a truly just and loving human community on the past legacy of not only previous popes, but Church Doctors as well, the pope blesses us with wisdom that surpasses anything I have read in a very long time.
While some of the passages in this encyclical will create a welcome debate among political conservatives and liberals, the underlying philosophy set forth should be readily agreed upon and welcomed by one and all. But rather than give you my opinion, I will set forth just a sample of my favorite sections, in the hope that once you read these few quotes, you will rush to the internet to read the 30,000-word document in its entirety.
In Section 25, we read of the fundamental principle upon which all political and social policy should be based: “I would like to remind everyone, especially governments engaged in boosting the world’s economic and social assets, that the primary capital to be safeguarded and valued is man, the human person in his or her integrity: Man is the source, the focus and the aim of all economic and social life.”
On the subject of poverty, he takes perfect aim at the culture of death, writing,
Not only does the situation of poverty still provoke high rates of infant mortality in many regions, but some parts of the world still experience practices of demographic control, on the part of governments that often promote contraception and even go so far as to impose abortion. In economically developed countries, legislation contrary to life is very widespread, and it has already shaped moral attitudes and praxis, contributing to the spread of an anti-birth mentality; frequent attempts are made to export this mentality to other States as if it were a form of cultural progress.
Some non-governmental organizations work actively to spread abortion, at times promoting the practice of sterilization in poor countries, in some cases not even informing the women concerned. Moreover, there is reason to suspect that development aid is sometimes linked to specific health-care policies which de facto involve the imposition of strong birth control measures. Further grounds for concern are laws permitting euthanasia as well as pressure from lobby groups, nationally and internationally, in favour of its juridical recognition.
Openness to life is at the centre of true development. When a society moves towards the denial or suppression of life, it ends up no longer finding the necessary motivation and energy to strive for man’s true good. If personal and social sensitivity towards the acceptance of a new life is lost, then other forms of acceptance that are valuable for society also wither away. The acceptance of life strengthens moral fibre and makes people capable of mutual help. By cultivating openness to life, wealthy peoples can better understand the needs of poor ones, they can avoid employing huge economic and intellectual resources to satisfy the selfish desires of their own citizens, and instead, they can promote virtuous action within the perspective of production that is morally sound and marked by solidarity, respecting the fundamental right to life of every people and every individual. (Section 28)
Human beings are every nation’s greatest resource. As Pope Benedict said, “Openness to life is at the centre of true development.”
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