Immediate action needed to stop coerced abortion in Missouri!

Contact state senators immediately!

On Wednesday, March 5, the Missouri Senate will take up for debate SB 1058, the MCC’s top priority pro-life bill for 2008.  SB 1058 makes it a crime to coerce a girl or a woman to have an abortion – whether it be through such means as physical violence, sexual assault, stalking, domestic violence, filing for divorce, cutting off child support, kicking her out of her residence, firing her from her job, or revoking her college scholarship – or threatening to do any of these despicable acts.

It is hard to imagine many crimes worse than forcing a teen mom or an adult woman to have an abortion (the killing of her own child) against her will.  Yet the abortion industry is strongly opposing this legislation!

Abortion rights supporters, including Planned Parenthood, the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL), and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), falsely testified to the House Health Care Policy Committee that SB 1058 is unconstitutional and interferes with family conversations and could cause parents, spouses and siblings of pregnant girls or women to be thrown into jail if they simply talk about abortion in front of her.  IN FACT, SB 1058 doesn’t prohibit such casual conversations BUT ONLY actions, bullying or intimidation intended to coerce a girl or woman to have an abortion.

However, some legislators may be confused by these lies from abortion supporters, and believe that SB 1058 could interfere with family relationships or communication within families.  NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH – by definition under the bill, coercing an abortion is the actions or repeated threats on the part of a person to compel a pregnant woman to abort her unborn child – and regardless of the circumstances, that is WRONG and should be prohibited.  The bill specifically excludes emotional outbursts within a family from the definition of coercion – but does penalize repeated threats or actual conduct, even within a family, that is intended to compel a pregnant girl or woman to seek or obtain an abortion against her will.

Coercion to have an abortion can come from a variety of sources – it may be an abusive boyfriend or husband who doesn’t want the responsibility or obligation to support a child – it may come from an employer who doesn’t want to pay benefits or provide maternity leave for an employee’s child – it may come from a parent or guardian who does not want the embarrassment of their child being pregnant.  Regardless of the reason for the coercion, it is WRONG for any person to coerce a pregnant girl or woman to abort her unborn child against her will.

BACKGROUND – SUMMARY OF SB 1058:

SB 1058 provides criminal penalties for coercing a woman to have an abortion against her will.  Coercion can involve committing a crime, repeated verbal threats or a course of conduct intended to compel a woman to have an abortion against her will.  The penalties provided for coercing an abortion are:

1. Increased criminal penalties if the act committed by the person coercing the abortion is already a crime (e.g., physical or sexual assault, kidnapping, etc.) – after all, there are TWO victims if an abortion is coerced: the pregnant woman AND her unborn child;

2. Class A misdemeanor if the act committed by the person coercing the abortion is not already a crime.

SB 1058 also clarifies current Missouri law that if the coercion rises to the level of abuse of a child, handicapped person or mentally ill person that is reportable under current law – then a report of that abuse must be made to the relevant governmental agency.  In some states (most notably Missouri’s neighboring state of Kansas), abortion providers have been accused of failing to inform the state when abuse has occurred that should be reported by law.

SB 1058 further clarifies that if a doctor knows that a woman is being coerced to have an abortion – then the woman is not giving her consent to the abortion “freely and without coercion” as the U.S. Supreme Court has previously upheld as a constitutional requirement before an abortion can be performed.  If the doctor or abortion clinic goes ahead and performs an abortion on her against her will, they could be charged with a felony.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

IMMEDIATELY call or contact your state senator and urge him or her to vote “do pass” the Abortion Anti-Coercion bill, SB 1058.  Contact information for all members of the state Senate is below.

http://www.senate.mo.gov/llookup/leg_lookup.aspx

Report back to the MCC whether the state senators you contact will vote for SB 1058.

Tell state senators that actions and words that are intended to coerce a woman to have abortions are wrong in ALL instances and should be prohibited by law.  It is wrong whether it be through physical violence, sexual assault, stalking, domestic violence, filing for divorce, cutting off child support, kicking her out of her residence, firing her from her job, or revoking her college scholarship – or threatening to do any of these despicable acts.

MESSAGE / TALKING POINTS:

Tell committee members that actions and words that coercing a woman to have abortions are wrong in ALL instances and should be prohibited by law.  Tell the committee member that Missouri law (chapter 455) already makes it unlawful for family or household members to engage in harassment, abuse (including emotional abuse of a child), molesting, stalking or disturbing the peace of another family or household member, and this bill elevates such behavior to a class A misdemeanor if it is done to coerce a girl or woman to have an abortion.  Remind the committee member that the bill specifically makes allowances for speech protected by the First Amendment and emotional outbursts within families, but prohibits only repeated threats or actual actions against the pregnant girl or woman.

Coerced abortion is a violation of the basic human rights of both the pregnant mother AND the unborn child – therefore, it is appropriate that penalties for crimes committed in order to coerce an abortion should be higher than they are for other crimes of domestic violence.

The time has come for Missouri to join the ranks of states that have or are seeking to penalize coerced abortions.