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Extreme conservatives in the Senate are about to introduce a sweeping ban on abortion. Here's one family who's already been hurt by this type of law:
Danielle and Robb Deaver were "over the moon" about Danielle's pregnancy until her water broke at 22 weeks. They were heartbroken to learn their baby would not develop further or survive, but that heartbreak was compounded when doctors told them they couldn't end their nightmare and induce labor because their state bans abortion after 20 weeks. Doctors had to wait for Danielle to get sick or for the baby to die before they could do anything. When baby Elizabeth was finally born, she survived for only 15 minutes.1
Senator Lindsey Graham is planning to introduce a national bill this week that criminalizes abortions after 20 weeks.2 When politicians introduce these inhumane bans on abortions, they are tying the hands of doctors who want to help couples like the Deavers. Less than 2% of abortions occur after 20 weeks, and many of them are for heartbreaking reasons that no one should ever have to face.3
Texas, North Dakota, and Arkansas have all passed 20-week abortion bans this year, and so has the House in Congress.4 If we don't make a stand against Sen. Graham's bill in the Senate, more states will be emboldened to pass these inhumane laws. We have to make sure that conservatives everywhere know we won't stand for this.
Tell the Senate: You have no right to legislate our medical decisions. Enough with the attacks on women. Block Graham’s inhumane and extreme abortion ban bill.
Add your name to the petition.
Extreme attempts to criminalize abortion after 20 weeks aren’t new. Multiple states have already passed such laws, including Texas most recently. But Sen. Graham's bill is unconstitutional, and it directly contradicts Roe v. Wade. A federal appeals court threw out Arizona's ban in May. Courts have also overturned similar laws in Idaho and Georgia.5
What’s worse are the heartbreaking stories of women who needed to abort their much-wanted pregnancies after 20 weeks. We received some of these stories during the battle in Texas from UltraViolet members. There was Kathy, a military wife with 3 college degrees and already a mother of 2 wonderful boys. At the 20-week ultrasound for her 3rd baby, the doctors found a severe case of spina bifida, “the worst they had ever seen.” She and her husband chose to terminate for the sake of their family. Kathy wrote that she still grieves but knows it was the right choice.
Doctors are also speaking out against these extreme bills. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has resoundingly opposed such legislation and told politicians to get out of their exam rooms.6
These extreme bills are not about women’s health or the lives of healthy babies. They are not about good and safe medicine. They are about extreme politicians who think they know better than women and our doctors about what’s right for our families. We need to make a national stand against this inhumane extremism.
Tell the Senate: stop your attacks on women and our families; stop Graham's extreme abortion ban bill.
Sign the petition.
Thanks for speaking out.
--Nita, Shaunna, Kat, Karin, Malinda, Adam, and Gabriela, the UltraViolet team
Sources:
1. Danielle and Robb's Story, Planned Parenthood of the Heartland YouTube, March 5, 2011
2. Lindsey Graham Will Put 20-Week Abortion Ban Before Senate: Report, Huffington Post, November 1, 2013
3. Facts on Induced Abortion in the United States, Guttmacher Institute, August 2011
Who Has an Abortion After 20 Weeks?, Slate, July 11, 2013
4. Restricts Abortion After Specific Gestational Age, Guttmacher Institute, October 1, 2013
5. House Republican Calls Nationwide Abortion Ban Vote ‘Staggering Stupidity’, Think Progress, June 13, 2013
6. Ob-Gyns Denounce Texas Abortion Legislation, The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, July 2, 2013
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