Federally Funded Lies

[ismnotwasm]

"Federally Funded Lies
Legislation aims to curb deceptive advertising by crisis pregnancy centers

By Martha Calhoon

The stories follow a familiar script: A woman who suspects she might be pregnant visits a local agency that advertises “abortion options,” believing she’ll be counseled on a full range of choices. But this place doesn’t give referrals to abortion providers, or information on contraception, and doesn’t staff medical professionals. Instead, volunteers in lab coats perform an ultrasound on the woman, show her graphic pictures of aborted fetuses, and insist that an abortion would put her at risk of infection and emotional trauma. Finally, she’s handed tiny baby booties and sent home, misinformed and distraught.

There are as many as 4,000 of these so-called crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) throughout the U.S., many of which mask their anti-abortion counseling agenda with advertising that promises legitimate medical care. It is this misleading promotion that Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) has challenged by reintroducing the Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women’s Services Act. The bill, which died in committee after being first proposed by her last year, would require the Federal Trade Commission to enforce truth-in-advertising standards for organizations claiming to offer abortion services."



http://www.msmagazine.com/summer2007/FederallyFundedLies.asp



This goes hand in hand with other threads on this topic. I hope this legislation passes. It's incredible these places get federal funding. Thank God for those who fight.

[bliss_eternal]

1. I'm hopeful this passes, too...

I've never understood how it's deemed appropriate for clinics like this be completely dishonest in their advertising. I also don't understand how clinics that offer false advertisting are legally allowed to exist.

Planned Parenthood, Family Planning Associates would NEVER tell a woman what to do. They offer choices and allow the woman to make the decision she deems as the most appropriate for her. They don't FORCE or coerce anyone into abortion, despite what the anti-choicers choose to believe.

If someone has cancer, they have options depending on what stage the disease is at. Perhaps they seek various practitioners for opinions prior to making a choice. People would be absolutely outraged if they went to a cancer clinic and were told,"...we won't offer you the option of chemo or tumor removal--we believe that's wrong...so here's what WE want you to do..."

But because it's a woman with a fetus, this sort of medical duplicity is supposed to be ok?
:grr::mad:

[uppityperson]

2. A friend happened upon one of these once. It was really bad.

I hope this bill passes.

Oh yes, she told me later that an early abortion is much easier all around, much less emotional scarring, than carrying an unwanted baby to term or having a later abortion. I hate those places. Speaking of emotional scarring.

[Katherine Brengle]

3. As did I.

And it worked (hence my 3-year old daughter).

I'm glad I had her, but I don't believe for a minute that I would be wallowing in regret right now if I hadn't.

Those places need to be shut down.

[ThomCat]

4. Back in the 80s and 90s when I was a pro-choice escort

at a doctor's office, women would periodically come to us who had been to one of those "Crisis Pregnancy Centers." It was always a horrible story about being locked in, preached to, yelled at, and forced to view propaganda.

I've always wondered how those places could be even remotely legal. It's fraud, pure and simple. x(