Trust Women Week

I hope all of my readers are with me on this, but I support women’s reproductive rights (access to affordable birth control, legal abortions, et al). This week is Trust Women Week, and I hope as many women (and men!) possible join in the Silver Ribbon efforts:

From January 20 to 27, join the first-ever “Trust Women Week,” an online mass mobilization for women’s lives and rights. The Trust Women/Silver Ribbon Campaign is the coordinating partner in this unique collaborative campaign, working with MoveOn.org and more than 50 organizations nationwide, to let legislators know that reproductive health, reproductive justice and reproductive rights are at the top of our agenda, and should be at the top of theirs.

In this collaborative national action, your messages as “virtual marchers” will be packaged and delivered directly to members of Congress, governors and state legislators to underscore that Americans trust women to make their own decisions about their bodies and their lives.

Online participants may select up to six tailored messages:

1. “I trust women and I vote;”
2. “Reproductive rights are human rights;”
3. “Keep abortion safe and legal, and make it affordable and accessible;”
4. “Stand up and be counted for reproductive justice;”
5. “We are the 99%. Fix the economy, and stop the attacks on women’s health;”
6. “Contraception Is Prevention.”

Join in this virtual freedom march, and you’ll see your participation on a real-time online map. Your participation is essential to this effort, so thanks for your support!

Click the title above to add your voice to the virtual march.

MoJo's Abortion Top 10

1. “The Man Who Loved Women Too Much”— Contributor Sara Blustain profiles Harold Cassidy, the lawyer behind a legal strategy that reframes abortion restrictions not as simply protecting the unborn, but rather as protecting women from the consequences of their decisions—in other words, chipping away at a woman’s right to choose in the name of…women’s rights. (January/February issue) 

2. “Are You Sure You Want an Abortion?” — Using information provided by the Guttmacher Institute, I put together these maps showing which states have imposed abortion restrictions such as waiting periods, obligatory ultrasounds, or mandatory counseling that includes discredited medical information. (January/February issue)

3. “The House GOP’s Plan to Redefine Rape“ — Pretty much all abortion restrictions, in this case a ban on the use of federal money for abortions, contain a rape exemption. But DC-based staff reporter Nick Baumann exposed a recent Republican attempt to redefine rape as only “forcible” rape. Boy, did that piss people off. Baumann’s story spread like wildfire—evenshowing up (hilariously) on Jon Stewart. The GOP caved on that provision. (Jan. 28, 2011)

4. “Is Providing Abortions Creating a ‘Nuisance’?” — In Wichita, Kansas, ground zero in the abortion wars, Dr. Mila Means wants to replace the murdered Dr. George Tiller as the area’s last remaining abortion provider. But thanks to threats from anti-abortion groups, and the ruling of a judge who had previously donated to pro-life causes, nobody will rent Means any office space. Kate Sheppard reports from MoJo’s DC bureau. (Feb. 4, 2011)

5. “If You Thought the GOP’s ‘Rape Redefinition’ Bill Was Bad…“ — MoJo editorial fellowMaddie Oatman reports on a proposal that would let doctors refuse to abort a woman’s fetus even if an abortion was necessary to save the life of the mother. (Feb. 8, 2011)

6. “South Dakota Moves To Legalize Killing Abortion Providers” — Kate Sheppard reports on a bill under consideration in the Mount Rushmore State that would have made preventing harm to a fetus a “justifiable homicide” in many cases. Her story caused a national uproar, forcing state legislators to table the bill. Nick Baumann later reported on similar bills introduced in Nebraska and Iowa. (Feb. 15, 2011) 

7. “Revealed: The Group Behind the Bills that Could Legalize Killing Abortion Providers”— Nick Baumann and Dan Schulman, our DC-based senior editor, show us who’s pushing all these “justifiable homicide” bills. (Feb. 28, 2011)

8. “Texas Considers Bill to Ban Almost All Abortions” — DC staff reporter Tim Murphyreports on a mind-bogglingly restrictive bill that was penned by anti-abortion activists and introduced in the Lone Star state without even the usual exemptions for rape and incest. Christ. (March 11, 2011)

9. “GOP Bill Would Force IRS to Conduct Abortion Audits” — Were you raped? Was it incest? These are the types of questions the government’s tax police would have to ask women who’ve terminated pregnancies if Congressional Republicans have their way, Nick Baumann reports. (March 18, 2011)

10. “The Limits of Tax Jihadism” — Citing the article above, political blogger Kevin Drummakes the case that Republicans are willing to push their anti-abortion agenda even at the expense of their anti-tax orthodoxy.