Reminder: it is called pro- CHOICE, not pro-DEFINITELY-GETTING-AN-ABORTION. it is about allowing women or couples to CHOOSE what happens with their own bodies. It is about the fact that maybe *you* would never get an abortion, but still not shaming the fact that other people might choose to have one. It is about the fact that *you* might get an abortion but not shaming other women about deciding to go through with the pregnancy even if they are young, unmarried, or not in a condition *you* would want to have a child in. It is about choice, and respect that we all have different opinions and morals.
I was a bit amazed yesterday at how quickly word spread of the comments on a LifeSiteNews article on the firebomb left at a Wisconsin Planned Parenthood.
Obviously, as word spread in the pro-choice community, the anti-choice folks caught wind. Some of the comments, essentially the most openly criminal, have disappeared from the site. Either lifesite took luke-warm action (many comments still exist, included below) or the worst of the commenters, Isaiah541, decided to to try and cover up his/her attempts to incite violence in the anti-choice community.
Below is various screen shots of remaining comments (not nearly as inflamitory as the deleted comments) as well as screen captures showing the official comment count of the story at “29” and the actual comment count in the comment section at “21” indicating that comments have been removed or deleted.
Keep in mind LifeSite has any pro-choice comments deleted within hours of their appearance on the site. LifeSite heavily moderates their comments and they knowingly let the now deleted comments stay posted on their site, visibile to the several people who viewed the page. The story was shared on facebook over 360 times, imagine if each of those shares had a minimum of 50 friends? Easily over 18000 people could have read comments that encouraged violence against abortion care facilities and providers.
I fear for escorts, volunteers, patients, staff, and physicians at facilities around the country (and now more and more abroad in countries where abortion was previously not contested) if the current culture of violence against abortion care goes unchecked and unnoticed.
Below is image showing the official comment count associated with this article.
Now, look at the actual count of comments that are visible. Comments have been either removed from the site or deleted by the author. The count is 21.
Now, a sample of the remaining posts. While they are in no way as incriminating as the original posts, they still suggest that it might be OK to use violence to prevent women from obtaining abortion care.
This last one upsets me, especially when you read the responses One of the commenters shared a story of a female family member who had an abortion under coercion (an unwanted, forced pregnancy choice is a tragedy. Coercion in any form is a tragedy). How is it I, an evil pro-choicer, can feel more sympathy and empathy for than woman than a “loving” anti-choicer?
AGAIN: If you ever witness any sort of comment or discussion where violence against clinics and clinic staff is being encouraged, please take a screen shot and submit an FBI tip. Print a copy of your screen shot or submit it to our blog for a permanent record.
Twitter has blocked current Tennessee Representative and Senate hopeful Marsha Blackburn from paying to promote a campaign announcement that falsely claimed she “stopped the sale of baby body parts.”
According to the Associated Press, Twitter told vendors for the campaign that the statement was “inflammatory,” and stopped the ad from being promoted on the service.
The ad can still, however, be posted as usual on Twitter, a company spokesperson confirmed to The Verge. The spokesperson pointed to Twitter’s advertising policy, which bans “inflammatory or provocative content.” Read More
Excited to announce that the limited edition Lovestreams Keyboard Decals that were for sale at the Late Night Work Club Los Angeles screening are now available for purchase online!
This is a very cool stick decal that can be applied to keyboards, notebooks, or anything (each key is an individual sticker!). It was designed by Rachel Ho RuiZhen with drawings by me. Designed for MacBooks, but works well on any keyboard (I have some on my Lenovo PC laptop)
All of the proceeds from this sale are being donated to the ACLU and Planned Parenthood.
Maybe you’re thinking about getting birth control for the first time, or maybe you’re ready for a change. Either way, there are some great resources out there!
To get the most out of your birth control, generally speaking, the more methods you use, the more effective it is. NO, that doesn’t mean using multiple condoms at once! It means using condoms along with the pill, or the IUD along with pulling out, or maybe a diaphragm along with Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (not having sex when you’re most likely to get pregnant). There are tons of methods and combinations, so if one doesn’t work the first time, keep at it!
If you’re not sure where to start, Planned Parenthood and Bedsider have tools to help you decide:
Just saw this important article about the effectiveness of Plan B emergency contraception and body weight. (Note: source is an “x free articles a month” site, but the incognito window trick works if you’re out of articles.)
The gist:
The Plan B “morning after pill” has lower effectiveness/a higher failure rate in individuals with higher body weight, with the effect becoming statistically significant around 155 pounds.
It does not, however, simply stop working at that weight cutoff, as some social media posts have suggested.
There’s a bigger chance it won’t work, but if you are in a situation where you need EC, and Plan B is what you can get, it’s still worth taking it.
Another pill EC pill, Ella, works well for users up to 190 pounds (but requires a prescription and is more expensive).
Planned Parenthood recommends the copper IUD for patients with larger bodies. If you need advice for your specific situation, they offer chat (free) and telehealth services (fee-based, but they have options).
The actual article has tons more information and links to sources.
President Trump’s allies in the Senate are hell-bent on ramming through his extreme pick for the Supreme Court, promising a final vote this week.
We can’t allow politicians to install a justice on our highest court who’s hostile to women’s fundamental health and rights. With the future of abortion access, birth control coverage, and respect for people’s fundamental rights at stake, we have to make our voices heard — loud and clear, right now — before the final vote. As a Planned Parenthood Defender, you know the value of speaking out when it’s needed most.
No Senate action has higher stakes than the confirmation of a Supreme Court nominee. With a lifetime appointment, a single justice can dramatically reshape our most fundamental rights.
Thank you for making your voice heard when it matters most.
Sincerely, Cecile Richards, President Planned Parenthood Action Fund
CALL SCRIPT
Hi, my name is ____________ and I live in _____________.
I’m calling to ask my senator to vote NO on Judge Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.
I’m extremely alarmed by Judge Gorsuch’s history of interfering with reproductive rights, including access to birth control and care at Planned Parenthood. Gorsuch has ruled in favor of the idea that corporations are people and a woman’s employer should be able to decide whether or not she has access to birth control. I do not trust him to uphold my fundamental rights, including the right to access abortion.
I’m counting on my senator to do the right thing and vote no on his nomination.
Thank you for your time.
(And if your senator opposes Gorsuch, thank them and encourage them to keep fighting!)
The FDA’s May 9, 1960 approval of oral contraception, aka “the pill”, transformed reproductive health. Women’s health advocate Margaret Sanger spearheaded and activist/philanthropist Katherine McCormick funded the R&D needed for this medical research breakthrough to improve women’s lives through “birth control.”
Margaret Sanger, a nurse, coined the term “birth control” and dedicated herself to educating women. Her own mother had 18 pregnancies in 22 years and died from ovarian cancer. In 1914, she started a newsletter, The Woman Rebel, to “advocate the prevention of conception.”
Sanger was indicted repeatedly and even arrested on obscenity charges under the Comstock Laws (1873) which defined birth control as obscene and made it illegal to send contraceptive devices or even info about it through the mail.
Flyer from benefit held on eve of Sanger’s trial for opening Brownsville Clinic. (Courtesy of Sanger Project).
Katherine McCormick heard Sanger speak in 1917 and grew convinced that women could only fully control their lives if they could control ifandwhenthey chose to bear children. She redirected her advocacy to the cause of birth control, even smuggling in diaphragms from Europe to New York at Sanger’s request.
When her husband Stanley died in 1947, Katherine inherited an estate estimated worth almost $40 million (more than $500 million today). Margaret Sanger introduced her to Gregory Pincus who was doing pioneering research on fertilization and hormones.
Katharine funneled to Dr. Pincus more than $2 million ($25 million today), nearly all of the money used to support his lab’s research and development of the contraceptive pill.
Read the National Archives Prologue Magazine storyRich, Famous, and Questionably Sane to learn how McCormick, who was blamed her husband’s inability to consummate his own marriage, became the catalyst for the sexual revolution.
Women Hold Banner at National Women’s Conference, November 1977. NARA ID 7452290.
Once your IUD expires you’ll no longer be protected from pregnancy. So If your IUD is due to expire soon, make an appointment with your nurse or doctor as soon as possible to have it safely removed.
Your IUD expiration date depends on what kind of IUD you have and the exact date you had it inserted. Put your expiration date in your phone, set an alarm, or put a note in your wallet after it’s inserted to easily remember your removal date. You can also use our app, Spot On, which has handy birth controlreminders.
IUD replacement based on brand:
Paragard should be replaced after 12 years.
Mirena should be replaced after 7 years.
Liletta should be replaced after 7 years.
Kyleena should be replaced after 5 years.
Skyla should be replaced after 3 years.
Your fertility goes back to normal and protection from pregnancy ends immediately after your IUD is out or expires. If you don’t want to get pregnant once you get your IUD removed, use another method of birth control. You can schedule an appointment for IUD removal and replacement at your local Planned Parenthood.
