2005 General Assembly

The 2005 Virginia General Assembly has begun and there are already 15 bills to further reduce women’s reproductive rights and freedoms. Of course this comes as no surprise given that the Virginia legislature overwhelmingly voted against Roe vs. Wade in 1973 and has since introduced bills every year in attempts to reduce women’s access to abortion and contraceptives.
Last year a bill that sought to ban the emergency contraceptives (EC) at state-funded public universities and colleges was narrowly defeated. This year the defeated bill’s sponsor, Del. Marshall (R-Prince William), has introduced legislation which would hold universities and colleges liable for any health complications a woman may experience resultant from her use of EC that she received from the student health services. This is a blatant attempt to make reproductive healthcare inaccessible to women by discouraging the distribution of vital contraceptives which prevent unintended pregnancies and millions of abortions every year.
Fortunately, the Birth Control Protection Act will be heard on the Senate floor this year. Senate Bill 456 makes it clear “contraception does not constitute abortion,” in order to ensure that laws that apply to abortion (24 hour waiting period, parental notification and consent) are not applied to contraception. Can you imagine going to pick up your birth control and your pharmacists says you have to wait 24 hours to receive them? For several years, opponents to women’s reproductive freedoms and rights have been blurring the lines between abortion and contraception in the General Assembly. Their attempts to restrict women’s access to basic birth control cannot go unchallenged. It is time to stand up and speak out for reproductive freedom and set the record straight on birth control as being a legitimate means for family planning.
I invite readers to join VCU-VOX and other pro-choice activists at the Capital on February 3rd to lobby in support of Senate Bill 456 and against the refusal clause bill and other proposed legislation aimed at restricting women’s access to reproductive healthcare. For more information please visit www.ppav.org.

Use Your Voice for Choice in 2005 and Stand Up for Women’s Rights.

Sincerely,

Sara Duke
VCU-VOX