Letter from Planned Parenthood’s Action Team!

March 2, 2006

South Dakota has made abortion a criminal act.

Ever since the South Dakota legislators cast their votes last week, people across the country have been calling Planned Parenthood in shock, in fear, and outraged. Horrified, a 92-year-old woman picked up the phone to make her first-ever gift to the reproductive rights movement. A mother of three called us, crying, to send her support.

And South Dakota may not be the only state to ban abortion – 9 states currently have abortion ban bills pending.

This bill was openly designed to launch a direct legal attack on Roe v. Wade – and that certainly factored into the decisions made by the politicians in South Dakota. Simply put, if pro-choice politicians were in office in South Dakota, we would not be facing this terrible news today.

South Dakota’s ban shows us that elected officials have considerable effects on health, education, and other policy issues in the states – and that’s why our work on the ground in key states is so critical. We must make sure that pro-choice candidates who respect women’s health and rights are elected, and that once they’re elected, they support policies and legislation that will protect women’s health and safety. We MUST succeed, because if we fail, other states will absolutely follow South Dakota. It has never been clearer: Elections have consequences.

The Action Fund is taking action!

We’re meeting with leaders in South Dakota, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, and other states facing similar bills to formulate an aggressive strategy to take on politicians who don’t respect a woman’s health and safety.

We know intimately what this ban will mean to the women of South Dakota, because right now a Planned Parenthood health center is one of the few places in the entire state where a woman can receive safe abortion services.

So we are passionate about this fight – and we are taking real steps. The Planned Parenthood Action Fund is working hard every day, in towns and cities across the country. Planned Parenthood is knocking on doors, educating the public, and mobilizing the grassroots – and I can tell you that we are making progress.