NOW SOUND MAY 2003
The Middlesex County Chapter of the National
Organization for Women meets the first Wednesday of each month at the
East Brunswick Library. The meetings are open to the public. Please
confirm the meeting by calling the library at 732-390-6950.
April
30-Wednesday Chapter Dinner Meeting, 6:30pm.
Everyday Gourmet Restaurant.
Rt 130 North, Lions Plaza, North Brunswick. Call
732-297-6699 for directions. Call 732-203-9824 or e-mail me at Mg to be included in the reservations. This is a social meeting where we
talk about current issues. The average entrée is $12 and it is BYOW.
Please join us; we need your input!
June 4- Wednesday-Middlesex County Chapter meeting. 7:30
East Brunswick Library, at EB Civic Center off of Ryder’s Lane.
July 11-13th. NOW National
Conference. Doubletree Hotel in Crystal City, Virginia. NOW will launch
THE DRIVE for Women’s Equality, a five-point plan to halt the right
wing’s reversal of the gains women have made over the last four
decades. Focusing on two key issues-reproductive rights and economic
justice-of utmost importance to women today, the Drive will mount a
massive mobilization of grassroots activists through a dramatic
expansion of communication and political organizing. It is not every
year that we can drive to a conference. That makes it even more viable
that you participate in this event. Visit the NOW website for more
information.
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My Experience with Rick Santorum or Feelings of
Imminent Danger
Eight years ago, Santorum was the keynote
speaker at my daughter’s college graduation in Pennsylvania. Due to
crowding, I viewed him from a jumbo screen in a room adjacent to the
arena where he was speaking. He was young, handsome and charismatic;
therein was the danger.
When he started to speak, it was all about how he
would bring “religion” back into government. His focus on the family
rhetoric bordered on Aryan nation propaganda. The worst part was he had
this large group on their feet and cheering every word. I felt like I
was at a Klan rally. He made Chris Smith look like a left wing liberal.
He attacked reproductive rights with a furor. The graduating class
roared with approval. I had passed into some parallel universe where
every belief of those around me where the opposite of my own. My husband
and I walked out in shock. We chalked this up to “this is rural Pennsylvania; he will never get away with this type of
public display of discrimination.”
We were wrong. His career in the Senate took off. He
is currently the third most important member of the Republican Party.
Santorum has finally showed his true colors to the rest of the world.
His public comparison of homosexuality to bigamy, polygamy, incest and
adultery is more than worthy of insisting he be removed. He stands by
his comments that the Constitution does not give us the right of sexual
freedom in our own homes. We must let it be known that the same
Constitution that permits him to make statements like these, does indeed
protect our right to privacy.
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WANTED:
Email Addresses!!!!
We are trying to use email as much as possible,
rather than snail mail, because it is so much quicker and also reduces
spending. We will NOT give out your email address. Please send it to Middlesex@nownj.org.
I will try to minimize the amount of emails. They will consist of
meeting notices, newsletters and periodic, urgent issue updates. Your
participation will allow us to use your dues for NOW activities.
THANKS!!!!
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Take
action to increase access to emergency contraception (EC) and reduce
unintended pregnancy! Write a letter to the editor of your local
newspaper to raise awareness about EC and efforts to make it available
over the counter. Here are the talking points:
-On
Monday, April 21, the makers of Plan B emergency contraception submitted
an application to the U.S. FDA to switch Plan B’s status from
prescription to over the counter.
-EC treatments such as Plan B are a concentrated
dosage of ordinary birth control pills that dramatically reduce a
woman’s chance of becoming pregnant if taken as soon as possible after
unprotected sex. EC does not cause abortion and does not work if a woman
is already pregnant. Rather, EC prevents pregnancy by inhibiting
ovulation, fertilization, or implantation.
-The sooner a woman takes EC after unprotected sex,
the better, but EC can be difficult to obtain in time. Women face broken
condoms and closed doctor’s offices over weekends. Where EC is
available over the counter, more women use it, alleviating worry and
preventing abortions.
For more info visit CAN@ProChoiceAmerica.org
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