Dear Friends,

Anti-choice politicians are at it again, this time with a direct attack on the reproductive autonomy of women of color

Tomorrow the U.S. House of Representatives is holding a hearing on legislation that would create substantial new barriers for women of color to the reproductive health services they need to stay healthy.  We must speak out against this dangerous and misleading anti-woman legislation!  

Supporters of the bill, H.R. 3541, entitled the “Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass Prenatal Discrimination Act of 2011,” claim that it would advance gender equity and civil rights by protecting the “civil rights” of unborn fetuses by banning race- and sex- selection abortions.  But don’t be taken in by this deceptive fiction – in fact, the bill is another undercover attempt to limit abortion access for women of color.  It would do nothing to improve gender equity, civil rights or racial health disparities.  Instead it will increase scrutiny on the reproductive decisions of Black, Latina, and Asian and Pacific Islander women and pressure providers who care for them to introduce racially discriminatory practices, like racial profiling based on the assumption that Black and Asian women may be seeking abortions because of the race or sex of the fetus.  As the bill’s supporters intend, this will result in reduced access to safe and legal abortion care for women of color.

We know from experience that making abortion harder to obtain will lead some women to seek abortions outside the established health care system, under unsafe and illegal conditions.  This, in turn, will exacerbate racial disparities in healthcare.  Let’s make sure that this dangerous legislation does not impede women’s ability to make the decisions that are right for us.  

Please call the members of the House Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution TODAY and tell them you oppose HR 3541: Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ), chairman; Mr. Mike Pence (R-ID), vice-chairman; Mr. Steve Chabot (R-OH); Mr. John Conyers (D-MI); Mr. Forbes (R-VA); Mr. Steve King (R-IA); Mr. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY); Mr. Mike Quigley (D-IL).  (Use this directory to find their contact information)


Thank you,


Cindy Pearson
Executive Director

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