Tag: women’s health

The Trump-Pence Administration Uses Alternative Facts to Drive Major Policy Decisions Around Women’s Health

The following article by Osub Ahmed and Jamila Taylor was posted on the Center for American Progress website August 8, 2018:

Thousands march in Portland, Maine, for the Women’s Walk on January 21, 2017. Credit: Derek Davis, Getty Images

The Trump-Pence administration has been using alternative facts and fake evidence with alarming regularity to justify major policy reversals and attacks on women’s health. Evidence-based decision-making has taken a backseat to an extreme conservative ideology, and the administration frequently uses disproven and demonstrably false information to rationalize its radical actions. Now, for no reason other than conservative ideology and partisan gamesmanship, the administration has decided to put the legal and regulatory foundations of the Title X family planning program and abortion rights in its crosshairs.

Roe v. Wade faces one of its greatest threats yet

When the Supreme Court issued its landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, it affirmed a woman’s constitutional right to abortion—ushering in an era in which women had more agency around their reproductive choices and a better ability to pursue safe abortion. Today, abortion access is considered fundamental to women’s reproductive rights and has been found to be safer than childbirth and other common medical procedures. Access to abortion also confers significant social and economic benefits, supporting women in their aspirations to pursue educational and professional goals that allow them to care for themselves and their families.

And yet, with clear evidence to support its importance, access to abortion has become increasingly regulated at the state level through a series of bans and restrictions, under the guise of safeguarding women’s health. In fact, between January 2011 and July 2016, states enacted an astounding 334 restrictions to abortion access. For some women, particularly women of color and young women, access is so restricted that this safe, legal medical procedure is virtually unattainable.

View the complete article here.

NBC/WSJ Poll: Support for Roe v. Wade Hits New High

The following article by Carrie Dann was posted on the NBC News website July 23,2018:

A majority of Republicans — 52 percent — say the Supreme Court decision should not be overturned.

As President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court pick readies for his eventual confirmation hearing, support for the court’s landmark ruling in Roe v. Wade has hit an all-time high.

A new poll from NBC News and the Wall Street Journal finds that 71 percent of American voters believe that the decision, which established a woman’s legal right to an abortion, should not be overturned. Just 23 percent say the ruling should be reversed.

That’s the highest level of support for the decision — and the lowest share of voters who want Roe v. Wade overturned — in the poll’s history dating back to 2005. In 1989, according to Gallup’s survey, 58 percent said they believed it should stay in place while 31 percent disagreed.

View the complete article on the NBC News website here.

Kavanaugh Is A Threat To Women’s Health

Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Kavanaugh, is a threat to women’s health. If he is successfully appointed, he would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. We know this because Trump admitted it is a litmus test for his Supreme Court nominees, and because  Kavanaugh has a long record of undermining women’s access to reproductive care.

Trump said that overturning Roe v. Wade would be a litmus test for his nominee.

“It is. It is.” – Trump, on whether overturning Roe v. Wade would be a litmus test for Supreme Court nominees, 2015

“I will be appointing pro-life judges.” – Trump, 2016

Continue reading “Kavanaugh Is A Threat To Women’s Health”

34 Men, 0 Women

In both the “you can’t make this stuff up” and “this is what we’re concerned about” schools, here is a release the Trump White House sent out citing support for Judge Kavanaugh.

Notice anything?  Every person on the list is a man.  There is not…one…single…woman. With concern on this judge’s position on Roe v. Wade, this is especially concerning: Continue reading “34 Men, 0 Women”

Rhetoric vs. Reality: How Abortion Bans Hurt Women

The following article by Anusha Ravi and Jamila Taylor was posted on the Center for American Progress website January 29, 2018:

2018 Womens’ March in New York City. Credit: Kena Bentancur/Getty

Throughout the 2017 congressional cycle, several bans were introduced that restrict women’s access to abortion. These bans were designed to impede access at various arbitrary points within gestation—after six weeks or 20 weeks, for example—or to prevent access to abortion on the basis of various reasons. These bans are dangerous for women, medically unnecessary, and based on misinformation and junk science.

The danger of abortion bans becoming law and threatening the promise of Roe v. Wade is significant. In early October 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 237-189 to pass legislation banning most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and the Senate will likely vote on the bill in early 2018. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence vocalized their support for the bill at the annual March for Life this January, indicating that in the case of a tie, the executive branch will wield their power to advance anti-choice legislation. Further, President Trump’s nomination of Justice Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court could protect anti-choice legislation if challenged judicially on the basis of Roe vs. Wade. The federal 20-week abortion ban idea originated at the state level: 20-week abortion bans are currently law in 21 states. Continue reading “Rhetoric vs. Reality: How Abortion Bans Hurt Women”

Linking Reproductive Health Care Access to Labor Market Opportunities for Women

The following article by Kate Bahn, Adriana Kugler, Melissa Mahoney, Danielle Corley and Annie McGrew was posted on the Center for American Progress website November 21, 2017:

An unidentified woman answers questions on a job application at a job fair in Sunrise, Florida, January 2013. Credit: AP/J Pat Carter

Overview

Reproductive health care access is inextricably linked to labor market opportunity for women, and bodily autonomy and economic empowerment are mutually reinforcing.

Introduction and summary

Economic opportunity is a central tenet of the American dream and a mainstay of American political discourse. But when embracing this core economic aspiration, the ways in which people’s complex lives affect their ability to fully engage in the economy are often overlooked . The Center for American Progress report, “The Pillars of Equity: A Vision for Economic Security and Reproductive Justice,”1 explored the diverse factors that affect the ability of women to determine the level and nature of their participation in the labor force and the economy. The report concluded, “Women’s economic contributions often depend on having access to comprehensive reproductive health services, as well as to education, jobs with livable wages, and workplace supports.” Understanding the connections between these economic and health issues is particularly important when determining the mix of policies necessary to place women on firm economic ground, as well as to empower women to make the decisions that make sense for them. Such analysis also requires moving beyond the issue silos that often isolate discussions about the economy, health care, and employment, as well as digging deeper into the growing body of research that reveals how these issues mutually reinforce each other.

Continue reading “Linking Reproductive Health Care Access to Labor Market Opportunities for Women”

A Catholic Nun Perfectly Explains the Hypocrisy of the “Pro-Life” Argument

This an oldie, but a goodie, with the original content coming from 2004.  However, with the misinformation, and “holier than thou” vibes coming from the mostly male authoritarians empowered by the Trump win, it’s well worth posting again.

The following article by Eleanor Sheehan was posted on the Popsugar website February 4, 2017:

A Catholic nun’s explanation of the term “pro-life” from 2004 is resurfacing after recent antiabortion events. On PBS’s Now With Bill Moyers, Sister Joan Chittister explained why being against abortion doesn’t mean you’re pro-life.

Here’s the full quote:

“I do not believe that just because you’re opposed to abortion that that makes you pro-life. In fact, I think in many cases, your morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born but not a child fed, not a child educated, not a child housed. And why would I think that you don’t? Because you don’t want any tax money to go there. That’s not pro-life. That’s pro-birth. We need a much broader conversation on what the morality of pro-life is.”

Continue reading “A Catholic Nun Perfectly Explains the Hypocrisy of the “Pro-Life” Argument”