Groups push for abortion-rights legislation
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- January
- 29
Advocates for women’s rights met with dozens of legislators today to push for passage of the “Reproductive Health and Privacy Protection Act,” which would recognize a woman’s “fundamental right” to make medical decisions about contraception and pregnancy, something not currently written in state law.
It is important that New York, a “pioneer” in legalizing abortion, “affirmatively defines a woman’s right to choose or refuse an abortion and the right to choose or refuse contraception,” said Carol Love, head of Planned Parenthood of the Rochester/Syracuse region.
Gov. Eliot Spitzer proposed the bill in the wake of last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that upheld a 2003 federal law on abortion. The law prohibits abortions in which a partially delivered fetus that is largely intact is removed, but not those in which a fetus is removed in pieces or that don’t involve vaginal deliveries. State lawmakers didn’t pass the bill last year, so the governor recommended it again.
New York lawmakers passed an abortion-rights law in 1970, three years before the Roe v. Wade decision that ensured women nationally could access the procedure. The state law has never been updated.
“It was the first time after 35 years that the Supreme Court really put a restriction on abortion in terms of not having an exception for women’s health,” said Reina Schiffrin, head of Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, adding that she hopes New York will once again be a leader in reproductive rights by passing the governor’s bill.
The governor and women’s advocates believe the recent Supreme Court ruling could threaten a woman’s right to choose an abortion if her life wasn’t in danger. The state legislation being proposed would ensure that women’s health is a primary concern in regulating abortion. It has widespread support in the Democrat-controlled Assembly but its passage is uncertain in the GOP-led Senate, 32-29, with one vacancy.
The bill would make several other changes, such as repealing the five abortion-related crimes in state penal law.
The state Catholic Conference and Conservative Party have opposed the legislation.
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, January 29th, 2008 at 5:32 pm by Cara Matthews.
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Jay Gallagher has covered Albany for Gannett News Service since 1984 and has been Albany Bureau chief since 1989. He`s a native of the Boston area and likes to point out that in this millennium, the score is Red Sox 1 championship, the Yankees 0. 
Cara Matthews has been a statehouse correspondent in the Albany Bureau since August 2005. Prior to that, she covered Putnam County government and politics at The Journal News for nearly five years. Before that, she worked at newspapers in Connecticut and covered the state Legislature for one of them. 
Early last week was the Annual “March for Life� in Washington, DC, over 700,000 marchers attended marking decision of Roe Vs Wade.
BTW….The press will not mention this in high fashion. (CSPAN did)
This group endorsing Spitz plan are also with Billary Clinton or Obama, it is the same group that use to endorsed the “Barbaric Procedure � known as “Partial Birth Abortion�
Which is now outlawed in this civil society called America.
“Partial Birth Abortion� was procedure that Pro-choices such as Former NY US Senator Patrick Moynahan, Former NYC Mayor Ed Koch and 92% of Americans simply called “Infanticide�
In short, is was the deliberate killing of a 9 month old child. Many politicians called it an “American Holocaust�
Americans when educated, could not believe it was going on in our Nation.
BTW….On the back door of this Country is the issue of “Euthanasia.�...
At March for Life, I heard an African American Minster talk of the number #1 killer among American Americans in America…..Abortion.
Is Obama listening?
Finally,
I think the Pro-Life movement has made great strides by understand 50% of all abortions are contributed to men who are forcing strong opinion on women (Child Support?)
Many understand that this is the most difficult decision a woman must make. Many women feeling loneliness, confusion and depression over this matter.
Pro-Lifers understand much of this and offer adoption choices (Large waiting list) & compassion.
Catholic Conference has much information on this scary law wanting to push through.
Jim Kelly – NY Conservative Campaigns