LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Pro-lifers need to make their views known to legislators

Posted

TO THE EDITOR:

The headline of an advertisement in the Providence Journal on November 22 asked “Do you vote pro-choice?” The cartoon at the end says “Keep abortion legal and safe in R.I.”

Many would have us believe that abortion is safer now because they are conducted by doctors instead of coat hanger non medicals. But in 1960, Dr. Mary Calderone, the director of Planned Parenthood, acknowledged that 90 percent of illegal abortions were conducted by physicians.

The truth is that even now many women are subjected to physicians whose indifference and incompetence have led to venereal diseases, perforated uteruses, comas, hysterectomies and deaths. A new web site AbortionDoc.org is a real eye opener into just how unsafe some clinics are. The site lists court records, medical board documents, describes disciplinary action, criminal records, failed inspection citations and other important records that dispute the claim of safety.

There are currently 13,000 plus documents and the numbers continue to rise. In addition, some 30 women have died from the use of RU 486. Thus far Rhode Island has been very fortunate (at least as far as I know) in part because late term abortions are the most dangerous and current law is limited to early stage abortions. But the bill that was proposed last year will undoubtedly be resurrected and that would change all that. Since the bill virtually relinquishes all state control to the abortion doctor and allows for any medical procedure, late term abortions will be possible (even partial birth abortion). I am assuming that the advertisement was laying the groundwork for the bill’s return.

I urge all pro-life voters to take the legislative list and make your pro-life views known.