Judy Blume urges donations to Planned Parenthood for Mom's Day, gets death threats from pro-lifers

[BurtWorm]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-05-08/the-judy-blume-abortion-war/


The Judy Blume Abortion War

by Rebecca Knight


...

It started innocuously enough. On Wednesday, Blume, a longtime public supporter of Planned Parenthood, sent an email to supporters on behalf of the group’s advocacy arm, soliciting donations to the organization in honor of Mother’s Day. The email, which went out with personalized subject lines—“Are You There, , It’s Me, Judy” —tells supporters that a charitable contribution to Planned Parenthood “is a gift any mother will appreciate.”

“No organization that I know of supports motherhood and all that it means more than Planned Parenthood,” the email reads. “Say thanks this Mother’s Day with a gift that honors her courage by making a donation to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund in her name.”

The link between that most sacred of Hallmark holidays and an organization best known for "child prevention," including, at some clinics, abortion services and morning-after pills, proved powerful fodder for right-to-life groups, who quickly seized on the email. “Quite honestly it turns my stomach to think about celebrating Mother’s Day by giving to an organization that kills babies,” says Christine Schult, who wrote about Blume's email at Catholic Media Review, an online publication.“I think that someone who writes children’s books should not be promoting abortion.”

In an article posted on Lifenews.com, Steven Ertelt, the editor of the publication, went further, urging readers to complain to Blume via mail or her Web site. Apparently, his readers did so in droves. Blume has been "inundated" with hate mail, harassing phone calls,—and even death threats—from "anti-choice extremists,” according to Planned Parenthood.

Ertelt, for his part, says he skeptical about the death threats. “Making up supposed death threats and harassing calls is a common tactic from Planned Parenthood, who gets upset when they are deluged with complaints about what they do,” he says.


...

[Ian David]

1. Are you there, forced-birthers? It's me, Margaret. n/t

[prolesunited]

2. Planned Parenthood provides many more services

that abortion. In fact, some sites aren't even equipped to do abortions.

What goes on in these people's head? They are so against abortion because to them it's murder, but they have no problem threatening to kill, or even killing, a live, sentient human being. Boggles the mind.

[get the red out]

5. And no problem eliminating other services to women

I have known women who went to Planned Parenthood for pap smears. I always found it an interesting contradiction that the anti-choice crowd has no concern about eliminating potentially life-saving health care for lower income women. I guess they don't have a "right" to their "life".

But the same people are ok with tor turning people to death and denying healthcare benefits to uninsured kids, so the contradiction is all in my head.

I now need to remember to write a check to Planned Parenthood when I get home, on top of my monthly donation.

[Stargleamer]

3. "gets death threats from pro-lifers"

this ever-occurring irony.

[Cha]

4. Yeah, those damned hypocrites..they'll

kill ya.:freak:

[LynneSin]

6. PLEASE DO NOT CALL THEM PRO-LIFERS!!!

They are not.

Call them what they are - they are anti-choicers.

There is only ONE person I use the term Pro-life and that's Bob Casey Jr. Although he is anti-choice he supports Birth Control and EC. He thinks there are enough abortion laws on the book and even voted against a few of Bush Activist Judges that made the senate floor (he is not in the Judicial committee - I highly doubt they'll ever give him a position in that committee). Casey is also an advocate for healthcare, education, labor - he truly care about what happens to the fetus once it is born. He is the ONLY person I call pro-life.

BTW, Casey was also rated one of the most liberal senators last term. You take away choice the man is a liberal.

[BurtWorm]

7. I take your point.

I usually do call them anti-choicers. I was running out of space and thought I'd go for cheap irony. ;)