Re: Senate Bill 1878--Again
The ACLU of Oklahoma is trying to get Governor Henry to veto this bill, but he won't meet with them until they have the votes to sustain a veto. So they need to find seven more votes, in addition to the ten who already voted no. My senator voted yes. *sigh*
The ACLU of Oklahoma is trying to get Governor Henry to veto this bill, but he won't meet with them until they have the votes to sustain a veto. So they need to find seven more votes, in addition to the ten who already voted no. My senator voted yes. *sigh*
Senator [],
I am writing to encourage you to change your vote on Senate Bill 1878, should the governor veto it. This bill would require a woman to have an ultrasound before being allowed to abort a pregnancy. Proponents of the bill claim this measure will ensure that a woman's consent to an abortion is voluntary, presumably by giving her a visual reminder that, should she continue the pregnancy, the fetus she is carrying will one day be a baby.
The decision about what information a patient needs should be left to her and her doctor. More than that, the women of Oklahoma are not children. When we seek abortions, we know what we are doing. Many women who seek abortions are in difficult places in their lives, faced with an even more difficult choice. Perhaps she already has other children and cannot afford to support another. Perhaps she has no medical insurance and cannot afford the pregnancy. Perhaps having a baby at that time in her life will destroy her chances of getting an education or keeping her job. Perhaps the pregnancy is a result of rape, or incest, or an abusive relationship. Women faced with such a difficult choice should not be forced to view an ultrasound in a misplaced attempt to make them feel guilty for seeking an abortion. Doctors and their patients, not politicians, should work together to decide what information and care is best in each situation.
Reducing the number of abortions is a noble goal, but Senate Bill 1878 is not the way to achieve it. Measures such as comprehensive sex education in schools, universal health care, paid leave during pregnancy, affordable child care, and domestic violence prevention/assistance would go a long way toward reducing the need for abortion. Senate Bill 1878 will do nothing but demean women by implying we are too stupid to know what abortion is and by interfering in the sacred relationship between a doctor and his or her adult patient. I ask you to do the right thing for the women of Oklahoma and help Governor Henry sustain a veto.
Thank you for your consideration,
[layniek]
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