By Dave Andrusko
A tip of the hat to Kathryn Jean Lopez over at National Review Online for referencing a story that begins “Planned Parenthood of South Central New York is breaking away from the national organization, changing its name and going solo.” Since there is not that much information in the story by Jennifer Micale, you want to be careful not to go overboard, but at the same time it’s fascinating news.
Here are two key paragraphs in Micale’s story.
“In early 2013, the group — which has locations in Binghamton, Norwich, Oneonta, Sidney and Walton — will become Family Planning of South Central New York, an independent nonprofit. …
“The agency’s local Strategic Planning Committee and Board of Directors unanimously approved independence because the Planned Parenthood Federation of America has mandated that all affiliates provide abortions by 2013. None of the local agency’s offices provide the service; instead, they refer women to nearby abortion providers.”
Chief Executive Officer Debra Marcus suggests the break is all about flexibility and local decision-making, not an objection to abortion. In fact, she told Micale, “We remain totally committed to women’s reproductive choice. If we provided abortions, however, we would be duplicating services already provided in our community.”
Just two quick but hugely important points. First, you rarely—RARELY—hear that PPFA demands that all affiliates provide abortion. Right now that is a requirement of affiliates, not all individual clinics, but we will see how long that lasts.
If that became widely known, would PPFA’s pristine image among the media elite take a hit? Of course not, but individual citizens would certainly experiencing an awakening.
Second, anytime a clinic associated with Planned Parenthood balks, for whatever reason, it’s a good day, a wise decision, and a victory for moral sanity.
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