Tag Archives: crisis pregnancy centers

Victory For Baltimore “Crisis Pregnancy Centers”

Jessica WakemanJune 27, 2012 //

“Crisis pregnancy centers” in Baltimore are having their First Amendment rights violated by being required to post notices that state they do not offer abortion referrals or birth control, an appeals court has ruled. “CPCs” are primarily run by anti-abortion activists, located near abortion clinics, and use trickery to dissuade women from terminating their pregnancies. Baltimore created an ordinance in 2009 telling them they must be transparent to women; however, the courts have repeatedly that ordinance is regulating CPCs’ speech. [Bloomberg]
Why has the blog TV Tropes deleted its entire content page about “rape tropes” in popular culture at Google’s behest? This is disturbing to me. [The Mary Sue]
Nationwide vigils have been planed for a young lesbian couple who were found shot on Saturday at a park in Texas. [Queerty] Keep reading »

Rick Santorum Should Have 72-Hour Waiting Period Before He Can Abort His Campaign

Jessica WakemanApril 17, 2012 //

Santorum Drops Out

Ding dong, the witch is dead! Read More »

Rick To Rape Victims

"Make the best out of a bad situation!" Read More »

Frothy Santorum Drink

Perhaps we'll knock back a few on Election Night? Read More »

Watch Video

Not that I wanted Sen. Rick Santorum to continue his presidential campaign of caveman asshattery. But it doesn’t seem fair that he should get to just, you know, choose that choice for himself while women around the country are forced to wait up to 72 hours to make a decision about their own freakin’ uterus. Ashley Judd, Michelle Trachtenberg, and a couple other ladies have the best idea on how to fix this injustice: Rick Santorum should have a 72-day waiting period — and a healthy dose of “non-judgmental” lecturing — before he can abort his campaign. Rick, are you sure this is the right decision? Are you suuuure? [Funny Or Die]

Idaho To Vote On Bill Forcing Ultrasound Before Abortion

Jessica WakemanMarch 19, 2012 //

Transvaginal Ultrasound

VA governor backs off the bill. Read More »

State-Sanctioned Rape

Virginia is considering mandating a transvaginal ultrasound. Read More »

Abortion Rights

All of The Frisky's posts about reproductive rights. Read More »

Idaho’s state senate may vote as early as today on a bill that will force women to get a medically unnecessary ultrasound before terminating an unwanted pregnancy. Anti-abortion activists say forcing a woman to have an ultrasound gives her “more information” before an abortion. Pro-choice activists and doctors say this is just another a tactic to restrict middle- and low-income women’s access to abortion, as the additional cost can be prohibitively expensive for women who already may be struggling to pay to end an unwanted pregnancy.

And guess who would love to jump in and “help” with that financial conundrum? Idaho’s so-called “crisis pregnancy centers,” which offer free ultrasounds to women but are staffed by anti-abortion activists — not actual doctors! — who will do everything, including lie to women, to stop them from terminating a pregnancy. Several cities around the country have actually passed legislation to thwart CPCs from misleading women.

So, to recap: Idaho women would be forced by law to have an ultrasound and if they cannot afford that ultrasound, the only place they could get one for free would be from anti-abortion activists.

Let’s have a big round of applause for women’s health care in America, everybody!

Keep reading »

San Francisco Smacks “Crisis Pregnancy Centers” For Misleading Women About Abortion

Jessica WakemanAugust 4, 2011 //

First Resort, a so-called “crisis pregnancy center” in San Francisco, has until the end of the month to change its advertisements misleading women about abortion-related services — or else. “Crisis pregnancy centers” often look like women’s health clinics and advertise about pregnancy counseling and services; they claim to help women pay for prenatal care and give them free diapers and other baby supplies. However, CPCs are frequently run by religious organizations and don’t have actual medical professionals on staff; instead, they “counsel” women to not have abortions. Thus, the SF city attorney sent First Resort a cease-and-desist letter warning them about its ads that “appear to be designed to confuse or mislead consumers.” The SF Supervisor Malia Cohen also introduced an ordinance on Tuesday that would punish CPCs for using misleading statements in their ads that make it seem like they provide abortion or counseling for abortions. Keep reading »

What Really Happens Inside A “Crisis Pregnancy Center”? Slate Explains

Jessica WakemanMarch 25, 2011 //

Women Misled About Abortion

San Fransisco smacked CPCs for misleading women about abortion. Read More »

Yesterday, I talked about Florida’s “Woman’s Right To Know Act,” which sounds all lovely and innocuous but is actually this Orwellian-named, anti-abortion bill that would require women, including rape and incest victims, to see an ultrasound of their fetus before an abortion. Oh. Ugh. So-called “crisis pregnancy centers” — which can also be called innocuous-sounding “pregnancy help centers” or “pregnancy care centers” — take the cake for Orwellian names. America’s 3,000+ CPCs portray themselves as “clinics” to help women with unwanted pregnancies. However, they are often run by and/or almost entirely bankrolled by anti-abortion activists or Christian groups and despite occasionally owning an ultrasound machine, have no medical professionals on staff. As Slate.com’s Explainer, um, explains, a 2006 investigation by Congress even found some CPCs tell women over the phone that abortion increases the risk of breast cancer, which a lil’ something called the National Cancer Institute says is not true. Keep reading »

South Dakota Governor Signs Bill Requiring 72-Hour Wait, “Counseling,” Before Abortion

Jessica WakemanMarch 22, 2011 //

South Dakota, South Dakota, South Dakota. What are we doing to do with you? Governor Dennis Daugaard, a Republican, has signed an extreme bill that will require women seeking an abortion to wait three whole days after meeting with her doctor for the procedure to be performed. This law will now be the longest waiting period in the nation. The bill also requires women receive pre-abortion “counseling” from so-called “crisis pregnancy centers,” which are anti-abortion groups that try to dissuade women from terminating pregnancies at all costs. A court challenge is expected imminently. But nevertheless, it’s a shameful day for women’s reproductive rights in America. [Reuters, NPR] Keep reading »

South Dakota To Require “Crisis Pregnancy Center” Counseling, 72 Hour Wait, Before An Abortion

Jessica WakemanMarch 4, 2011 //

You fail at life, South Dakota: the state’s senate has passed a bill that requires a woman wait 72 hours and receive “counseling” from so-called “crisis pregnancy centers” before an abortion. SD’s governor, who is anti-abortion, said he is “inclined” to sign the bill into law. Keep reading »

NYC Forces “Crisis Pregnancy Centers” To Disclose Motives To Women

Jessica WakemanMarch 3, 2011 //

Some good news, finally: New York City’s City Council voted yesterday to require so-called “crisis pregnancy centers” to be more transparent about their anti-abortion motives to women.

There are different types of CPCs, but many are run by anti-abortion extremists which intentionally appear to look like abortion clinics from the outside but in actuality will dissuade women from ending a pregnancy through any tactic at all. The city council demanded that CPCs inform women on advertising and signs in entrances and waiting rooms that they do not actually provide abortions, emergency contraceptives or prenatal care. CPC employees will also be required to provide that information if asked about it over the phone or in person. NYC’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg is expected to sign the bill into law. Keep reading »

South Dakota Bill Would Require “Crisis Pregnancy Center” Counseling Before An Abortion

Jessica WakemanFebruary 24, 2011 //

South Dakota, will you stop f**king with us? Enough already! South Dakota’s House of Representatives has approved a bill requiring a woman seeking an abortion to be “counseled” first at a so-called “crisis pregnancy center.”

Proponents of the bill say they are trying to assess whether women are being forced to end a pregnancy, as a doctor would have to sign off that the abortion is “voluntary, uncoerced, and informed.” The bill, which refers to the woman as a “pregnant mother” (agenda, anyone?), requires the woman to have pre-abortion counseling and be informed what kind of help is available to them if they continue the pregnancy. The bill also requires the woman to wait 72 hours after first meeting with the doctor who’ll perform the abortion. That time period is what anti-abortion activists claim is giving women time to think, but in reality it makes scheduling the procedure more difficult for working women or women with children, as they have to go to not one appointment, but two. And considering the vast majority of counties in America do not have an abortion clinic, terminating a pregnancy can involve driving long distances in some parts of the country. Keep reading »

NYC Considers Making “Crisis Pregnancy Centers” Come Clean About Anti-Choice Stance

Jessica WakemanOctober 12, 2010 //

At some point in your life, you’ve probably seen a billboard which said something like “Pregnant? Scared? Call us!” You may have thought nothing of it, because you weren’t pregnant or even sexually active yet. In New York City, home to over 8 million people, signs like these depict a young, concerned-looking women under the words “Free abortion alternatives.” They advertise the 12 various E.M.C. FrontLine Pregnancy Centers around the city which are “crisis pregnancy centers”; the city also has four other CPCs.

Indeed, they offer “abortion alternatives,” if you could even call them that. “Crisis pregnancy centers” are actually anti-abortion organizations, often run by pro-life groups, and do not actually provide a full range of reproductive health services for women. They sometimes offer sonograms for pregnant women. However, they are not necessarily staffed by licensed medical professionals and do not provide family planning (like birth control pills) or referrals for abortions. Keep reading »