NARAL

Pro-Choice Texas
Spring 2007

Choice News
NARAL Pro-Choice Texas and NARAL Pro-Choice Texas Foundation

Legislative Update: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good: NARAL Pro-Choice
Texas continues to work hard to
improve access to a full range of
reproductive options and support
healthy Texas families!
Were proud to report that Prevention First initiatives including
SB 837 and HB 1842 were introduced and heard in the House and
Senate. In response to these and
other initiatives, 328 witness
cards were submitted in support
of pro-choice bills. Meanwhile,
NPCT volunteer Postcard Captains
for Choice have been collecting
postcards in towns across Texas to
show constituency support of
Prevention First initiatives.
In addition, were proud to
announce the latest edition of
NPCT Foundations report, Crisis
Pregnancy Centers in Texas: A
Hidden Threat to Womens
Health. This report was instrumental in generating five pieces
of pro-active legislation which aim
to regulate Crisis Pregnancy
Centers and their controversial
contract with the State for $5
million.
The Bad: However, certain Texas
legislators continue to play
politics with womens health by
filing over a dozen pieces of antichoice legislation. None of these
bills include any prevention
measures to protect womens
health. NPCT has several toppriority bills to defeat in the
coming weeks: First, Sen. Patrick
(R-Houston)

filed a trigger bill (SB 186) which

would create a near-total ban on
abortions in Texas if Roe v. Wade
is overturned and would dangerously jeopardize womens health.
Second, the very invasive SB 785
by Sen. Shapiro (R-Plano) is a
burdensome proposal that would
regulate abortion providers
through measures that serve no
legitimate health care purposes.

The Ugly: Sen. Dan Patrick (RHouston) has filed several shocking pieces of anti-choice legislation. These include a trigger
bill (SB 186), another that would
create a controversial program to
bribe pregnant women with $500
for their newborn babies instead
of choosing abortion (SB 1567),
and yet another that would force
women to review ultrasound
images of their pregnancies
before having an abortion even
against our wishes (SB 920).
These extreme tactics by Sen.
Patrick are prime examples of
dangerous and divisive politics we
are working hard to keep out of
your doctors office!

The Last Word:

Good news from our neighbors to
the north and south!

To further demonstrate the

political motivations of this
measure, the author of the House
version of the bill, Rep. Morrison,
testified that no one from her
district had contacted her about
filing this bill, yet she made it a
priority on her legislative agenda.

On April 18, Gov. Henry of Oklahoma vetoed a dangerous and

divisive abortion ban in Oklahoma.
In an impressive display, more
than 40 medical professionals
stood behind him as he made his
announcement. And in a landmark
decision on April 24, Mexico City
lawmakers voted to legalize
abortion during the first three
months of pregnancy.

Make a choice fashion statement

with an Even Cowgirls Get to
Choose t-shirt! Baby tees and
regular styles available. Visit
www.ProChoiceTexas.org or call
(512) 462-1661 to order.

Remember NARAL Pro-Choice Texas in your will, life insurance, or retirement plan! If you have questions, or
would like the wording to do so, please contact Sara Cleveland at (512) 462-1661 or [email protected]

NARAL Pro-Choice Texas

P.O. Box 684602
Austin, TX 78768
Phone: (512) 462-1661
Fax: (512) 462-2007
[email protected]
www.ProChoiceTexas.org
Executive Director

Sara S. Cleveland
Deputy Political Director

Laurie Felker Jones

Director of Administration &
Outreach

Katie Mahoney
Board of Directors

Leslie Booker
Margot Clarke
Carol Drennan
Marianne Dwight
Jennifer Mattingly
Catherine Mauzy
Janet Maykus
David Ray
Celeste Villarreal
Foundation Board of Directors

Leslie Booker
Margot Clarke
Michael Hirsch
Rachel Howell
Jennifer Mattingly
Catherine Mauzy
Janet Maykus
Sheila Parr
Gretchen Ritter
PAC Board of Directors

Letter from the Executive Director

Dear Friends,
If youre involved in womens causes, youve likely heard the
phrase Safe, Legal, and Rare when referring to abortion. I
like it - almost. It addresses the fact that we see abortion as
a womans legal (and inherent) right; it validates our concern for womens health; it speaks to the concept of prevention, which we all agree is the best method for decreasing
unwanted pregnancies. But what the phrase does not address is the issue of
privacy. With the decision handed down by the Supreme Court on April 18, I
find myself examining more closely the issue of privacy in womens health
issues. This decision simultaneously puts politicians into the examining room
with a women and her doctor AND fails to mention that prosecuting these
cases would involve providing numerous unknown individuals access to a womans
full medical records. Now Im not sure about you, but I dont care for either
of these invasions one iota.
So, my fellow supporters of individual rights, I present you with a proposition:
Lets combat these invasions in two ways. First, lets raise our voices. Many
people have looked to honor Molly Ivins memory by raising hell. Lets do
the same and ensure that the people around us who arent aware of whats
happening right now, know. Second, lets renew our commitment to the cause
and try to do even more in the coming months then we have in the past few to
stop the invasions. With the Legislature in session, the conservative Supreme
Court, and anti-choice lawmakers constantly trying to take away our rights,
its going to take a big effort on our part to hold our ground until the pendulum swings. Lets do it together, and lets do it with arms linked, shouting all
the way, Safe. Legal. Rare. Private.
Fondly,

Leslie Booker
Michael Hirsch
Celeste Villarreal

Sara S. Cleveland

Become a Monthly Sustainer - Join Sarahs Circle Today!

Your video rental membership is likely $10 or
more a month, your local newspaper subscription is $15 or more, your gym membership is
probably $20 or more... how much is an
organization fighting for your reproductive
rights worth to you?
Please consider becoming a monthly donor by joining Sarahs
Circle, a group of monthly donors named in honor of Dr. Sarah
Weddington, the Texas lawyer who argued and won Roe v. Wade.

Simply fill out the Sarahs Circle box on the

enclosed return envelope
or visit www.ProChoiceTexas.org
2

New Faces at
NARAL Pro-Choice Texas:
Executive Director Sara S. Cleveland holds an
M.S. in Educational Human Resource Development from Texas A&M. A native Texan, her
diverse career portfolio includes work with
organizations ranging from General Motors to
the Lance Armstrong Foundation, where she
served in various developmental capacities for
the past five years.
Board member Leslie Booker holds a J.D. from
Howard University School of Law. She has
worked as a public defender and a local
prosecutor, and currently serves as an attorney
for the Texas Education Agency. She also
volunteers for the Susan G. Komen Association
Austin affiliate, and is a member of the
Friends of Christopher Guild.
Were thrilled to be working with Sara and
Leslie - please join us in welcoming them to
the NARAL Pro-Choice Texas team!

NARAL Pro-Choice Texas

HEROES

&

ZEROS

OF THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE

Rep. Jessica Farrar (D-Houston) led the
charge in support of womens health for
yet another Session, filing numerous proactive pro-choice bills. As one of only
two pro-choice members (and the only
woman!) on the House State Affairs
Committee, she has been instrumental in highlighting misguided and extreme anti-choice bills.
Rep. Anchia (D-Dallas) introduced Prevention First
bills to ensure Contraceptive Equity coverage from
insurance companies for contraceptives (HB 268) and
signed on as a leader for the Texas Prevention First
Act of 2007.
Sen. Watson (D-Austin) and Rep. Mark Strama (DAustin) led the debate on Prevention First solutions
by filing the Texas Prevention First Act (SB 837/ HB
1842) and garnering support from democratic and
republican colleagues from across the state.
Rep. Mike Villarreal (D-San Antonio) authored
several pro-choice bills and amendments to regulate
Crisis Pregnancy Centers (HB 2223), and and makes
us proud as a leader on the House floor by urging
Prevention First solutions.

OF THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE

Sen. Patrick (R-Houston) tops this list for his
zealous assaults on womens health in Texas. Not
only did he file a dangerous and extreme bill to
create a near-total ban on abortion in Texas (SB
186), he also proposed two other shocking bills: one
to pay pregnant women $500 for their newborn
babies (SB 1567); and another to force women to view ultrasound images regardless of their consent (SB 920)!
Sen. Shapiro (R-Plano) and Rep. Morrison (R-Victoria),
introduced companion bills (SB 785 & HB 1750) that would
require the state government to collect a laundry-list of personal and private medical information from women seeking
abortion care in Texas.
Rep. Swinford (R-Dumas). As Chair of House State Affairs
Committee, he has routinely put politics before policy to
support attacks on womens health. In a particularly bold
move, he controlled the order of testimony at an April 2nd
hearing, forcing pro-choice supporters to wait behind antichoice witnesses for over 7 hours before testifying!
Rep. Chisum (R-Pampa) continues his legacy as an anti-choice
champion in the Texas House, calling for a dangerous and
extreme near-total bill ban on abortion in Texas (HB 175).
Need we say more?

Federal Abortion Ban: What does this mean for our country and Texas?
For the first time since Roe, the Court blesses a prohibition with no exception protecting a womans health
the Courts defense of it, cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this Court and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to womens lives. A
decision so at odds with our jurisprudence should not have staying power. -Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs
dissent in the Federal Abortion Ban cases (Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood)

What happened in Washington, DC:

On April 18, 2007 the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 to uphold the Federal Abortion Ban, providing no exception to protect a womans health. This decision marks a landmark setback for womens health throughout
the United States, and especially in states like Texas where anti-choice politicians routinely play politics with
womens health. The Supreme Court struck down an almost identical state law as unconstitutional in 2000,
and every federal court to hear a challenge to this first-ever federal ban on abortion declared it unconstitutional. Until now.
Response in Texas:
In response to the decision, over 150 supporters of womens health,
freedom and privacy joined together in front of the State Capitol
building in Austin with less than 24 hours notice to raise awareness
about this landmark setback for womens health and, to urge Texas
lawmakers to abandon similar dangerous and divisive anti-choice
measures here in Texas.
In times like these, its important to reflect on powerful demonstrations of our values like the March for Womens Lives on Washington,
DC just three years ago in April 2004. While many were not able to
attend, the 1.4 million people who marched that day created the
largest march of its kind in American history. We are pro-choice
America; we are pro-choice Texans and we will prevail.

NARAL Pro-Choice Texas

Over 150 supporters gathered at the State

Capitol on April 19 to protest the Supreme
Courts decision

1. Call your legislator. Your lawmakers need to

hear you voice your support for pro-choice,
preventive initiatives and your opposition to
unnecessary and invasive anti-choice legislation.
2. Become a Postcard Collector for Choice
and make a difference this legislative session. By collecting 10 postcards youll help
friends and family take 5 minutes to communicate with their legislators about the importance
of Prevention First solutions. Its easywell
send you a kit with everything you need to be
successful getting Prevention First postcards
signed. For a postcard kit, contact
[email protected].
3. Write a letter to your local newspaper
editor. Letters to the editor are often the
most-read section of a newspaper, and theyre
a great way to educate thousands of your
neighbors about choice-related issues in the
Texas legislature. For tips and instructions,
contact [email protected].

UPCOMING OPPORTUNITY:

3 THINGS TO DO RIGHT NOW:

Take Action for Womens Health!

This summer, NARAL Pro-Choice
Texas Foundation will undertake
two new survey projects. One is
an ambitious survey of all Houston
pharmacies to determine and
highlight the availability of emergency contraception (EC) for
Houston-area women. The other is
an investigation into controversial
Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) in
Texas. Well be counting on prochoice supporters across Texas to
help conduct these surveys over
the phone. If you have a phone,
you can help out! Well send you
everything youll need in a survey
kit through the mail! For more
information about how to help
survey Houston pharmacies or CPCs
in Texas (from the convenience of
your own home) please contact
[email protected] or call
(512) 462-1661.

Volunteer Spotlight: Gail (Houston)

71-year old Gail is a web and marketing designer, as well as a teacher at her
local community college. When asked about why she got involved with our
Prevention First campaign, Gail responds, Only by educating our young people
can we hope to eliminate the need for abortion. As a former social worker who
worked with unwed mothers, I never saw a situation where abortion was a first
choice. Most often, I heard women say something to the effect that they didnt
believe that they would or could get pregnant. This is definitely a situation where
sex education given at the right time would have prevented an unhappy circumstance. As for her views on reproductive rights: I see a ban on abortion as a means of preventing poor women from having an abortion. More affluent women have always been able to get
safe abortions ... A ban on abortions means legal, safe abortions for the wealthy, and back-alley
procedures under unsafe conditions for the poor. Lack of sex education together with lack of
access to reproductive rights only adds up to an increasingly large underprivileged population.

Volunteer Spotlight: Christina (San Antonio)

36-year-old Christina is a self-described attorney, property manager, and agitator.
A former Naval Officer, Christina volunteered to become a Postcard Captain for our
Prevention First campaign this spring. Why did she volunteer to be a Postcard
Captain? I believe small acts can make big differences... The postcard campaign
demonstrates this principle and has proved to be an easy piece of activism for me.
Many folks will support this worthy cause if asked. I have had no problem explaining
the Prevention First Act and getting men and women to sign on. Christina got
involved with NARAL Pro-Choice Texas because she believes that every human being must be able to
make his or her own decisions regarding the basic course of his or her private life.