And They Are At It Again

The 2009 Legislature is teeming with attempts to take out our right to choose.

The list is a long one, but let's start with Dan McGee's attempt to pick up where Jore left off, by constitutionally defining a person in SB406. Apparently he missed the 2008 Montana primary where signature gatherers for Jore's amendment couldn't come close to getting on the ballot. He also must have missed Colorado's similar amendment getting the ultimate smackdown. He is also running SB46 as a constitutional amendment. Stating that the state of Montana has a compelling interest in the unborn. McGee is gunning for us ladies. These two are not just aimed at banning abortions, but could be used to control birth choices, ban certain birth controls (AKA the pill), punish women who have miscarriages and outlaw some infertility treatments.

Update ** Tomorrow morning, state Senator Dan McGee is having a hearing on SB 46, an amendment to eliminate the right to privacy for pregnant women in Montana. If this amendment passed, the state would have an interest in every pregnancy whether a woman chose to access abortion care, had a miscarriage or stillbirth, or was making decisions around pregnancy care and birth. I hope you will join us in asking Montana's Senators to vote "no" on this dangerous amendment by clicking the link.

Then there is Gerry Perry taking a stab at parental notification. In Montana, we already have a parental notification law on the books, but it was struck down as unconstitutional based on Montanans constitutional right to privacy. Perry thinks that SB374 can fix all of that. Parental notification is NOT a good idea. It comes across as a moderate compromise in the abortion debate, and it pulls at the heartstrings of parents, but most teens will talk to their parents about having an abortion, and those that won't have a compelling reason not to, to have them go in front of a judge to get permission is not going to help, especially in small rural communities, like ah hem, ALL OF MONTANA. Don't teens have an equal right to privacy that adults do?

There are more. . . Check back later.

I will add this, what can you do? E-mail, call, go up to the capitol to harass the members of the Senate Judiciary committee (scroll down) and beg them not to pass these bills out of committee. Or show up and testify.