Anti-Abortion Advocates? Bring 'Em On, Texan Says

[gristy]

Great article in today's NY Times about Cecile Richards, the new president of Planned Parenthood.

By ROBIN FINN
Published: March 10, 2006

CECILE RICHARDS, the new and instantly embattled president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, would like those retro "folks" — her word — intent on knocking her organization, and the entire abortion rights movement, off the map to know she takes after her maternal grandmother.


<snip>
Ms. Richards ought to know. In her previous jobs as president of America Votes, a coalition of 30 liberal-leaning national organizations that spent $350 million on political activities in 2004, co-founder of America Coming Together, a political action committee created to challenge the Bush administration, and president of Pro-Choice Vote during the 2000 election cycle, she pushed for a different electoral result. America Votes survived the 2004 election, she says, but its candidates did not: "Operation Successful, Patient Died." No, her sense of humor did not perish with the pro-choice slate.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD serves five million Americans and concentrates 90 percent of its efforts on preventing unwanted pregnancies, Ms. Richards, says, not terminating them.

"No one does more to reduce the need for abortions in this country than Planned Parenthood. I would welcome legislators, including those from South Dakota, to work with us on family planning instead of focusing on making doctors and women criminals," she adds, rearranging the artfully mussed and gelled cap of platinum blond hair that, combined with her statuesque carriage, inspires stares from strangers mistaking her for the pop chanteuse Annie Lennox. She takes that as a compliment, too.

Go here for the rest: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/10/nyregion/10lives.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

[TahitiNut]

1. Where did Faye go?

"Faye go" ... "Faygo" ... get it? :dunce:

[rurallib]

2. Since I can't pull up the NYTimes - who is her maternal grandma?

[xxqqqzme]

3. "...CECILE RICHARDS, the new and instantly embattled president

of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, would like those retro "folks" — her word — intent on knocking her organization, and the entire abortion rights movement, off the map to know she takes after her maternal grandmother

That would be the tall, whip-thin woman who, nine-months pregnant and bedridden, took a timeout from home-birthing a future governor of Texas — Ms. Richards's mother, Ann — to wring the neck of the chicken her family was having for dinner. Plucky.

"I love the idea of that story, and I'm sure it's true," says Ms. Richards, a 5-foot-10 (not counting high heels) antithesis of a shrinking violet. She's got magnetism and works it. It's all in the drawl..."

[nonpareil]

4. Her mom is Ann Richards...

the former Texas governor. In the article she tells a story about her grandmother who, "...nine-months pregnant and bedridden, took a timeout from home-birthing a future governor of Texas — Ms. Richards's mother, Ann — to wring the neck of the chicken her family was having for dinner."

[gristy]

5. Wow, I was going to welcome you to DU, nonpareil

But I see you've been with us since Aug 2004. Eight posts in a year and a half - gotta be a record. Here's a "hi there", anyways! :hi:

[Jade Fox]

6. She sounds great.....

being proactive, and pitching the ball back into their court:

"I would welcome legislators, including those from South Dakota, to work with us on family planning instead of focusing on making doctors and women criminals."

Wow.