By Kathleen M. Gallagher
Today the Albany Times Union ran a commentary I penned on late-term abortionists like Steven Brigham, and how the radical “Reproductive Health Act” would make New York State a safe haven for them to ply their trade here. Please give it a read. Then contact your state lawmakers and urge them to oppose this dangerous legislation.
By Kathleen M. Gallagher
Congratulations to the Maternity & Early Childhood Foundation, Inc., which has been included in the Governor’s State Budget proposal for the coming fiscal year.
The Foundation funds critical programs for high-risk pregnant and parenting young women, many in low-income and isolated areas of the state, to empower them to bear their infants and raise their families with dignity. The Foundation has been down a rough fiscal road in the last couple of years; just a few years ago it received more than $1.2 million from the state, enabling it to serve in many counties.
But due to the economic downturn, that number has steadily decreased, and last year the Foundation was eliminated from the Governor’s Budget entirely. Thankfully, the Legislature saw fit to reinstate the Foundation, albeit at a significantly lower appropriation, about $300,000. That same amount is what has now been proposed for 2012-2013.
Considering that our Medicaid program spends millions of dollars each year for abortions, that’s not nearly enough, but it’s something. Let’s all urge the Legislature to increase state funding for the Maternity & Early Childhood Foundation, so young, vulnerable, pregnant women truly have a meaningful “choice.”
By Kathleen M. Gallagher
The Knights of Columbus, the world’s largest Catholic family fraternal service organization, has featured an article of mine in the January edition of Columbia, their monthly magazine. It’s about the importance of preparing for end-of-life decision-making, as seen through my eyes following a family crisis. I encourage you to read it, and many thanks to the Knights for getting the message out there.
By Kathleen M. Gallagher
Back in December, following a horrific Manhattan elevator accident in which a woman was killed, Governor Andrew Cuomo stated that the tragedy shows “how precious” life is: “When you kiss your loved ones good-bye in the morning, sometimes we take for granted just how precious the gift is and how random life can be.”
Hmmm…I guess some lives are more precious than others. Yesterday, in his written (but not spoken) State of the State address, the Governor expressed his support for the pending extreme abortion bill: “I will continue to vigorously protect a woman’s right to choose and will fight for passage of the Reproductive Health Act,” his statement read. This is a bill that would allow late-term abortions – in the 7th, 8th and 9th months of a pregnancy – for virtually any reason. It seems those fully-formed babies are not quite as precious as the ones who are born…
By Kathleen M. Gallagher
Dr. Steven Brigham … just his name is enough to make me feel sick to my stomach. But there it was again, this time dampening my holiday season when news broke that he’d been indicted on 10 counts of murder in Maryland. Authorities had been investigating him for quite some time and found a freezer with 35 dead babies inside, at least one of which was 36 weeks of gestation. Apparently under Maryland’s fetal homicide law, it’s illegal to abort a viable unborn baby. (Wow! And the law is actually enforced!)
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By Kathleen M. Gallagher
New York State still lags behind in protecting women and unborn children from acts of violence by third-party perpetrators. Add North Carolina to the list of 36 states – yes, 36! – which have amended their laws to hold assailants accountable for crimes committed against pregnant women and unborn children.
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By Kathleen M. Gallagher
On December 7, 2011, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius denied the federal Food and Drug Administration approval to market the “morning-after pill” known as “Plan B” as a non-prescription drug for young girls. The FDA had apparently been ready to lift its current “prescription-only” restriction on distribution of the drug to girls under age 17. The Secretary overruled that, and noted that “there are significant cognitive and behavioral differences between older adolescent girls and the youngest girls of reproductive age.”
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By Kathleen M. Gallagher
Yesterday the NYPD announced that a 20-year-old woman had been charged with “self-abortion,” a rare charge in the state of New York. The arrest was made after the body of an unborn child was discovered in the trash near a Manhattan apartment building. The arrest was possible because under New York’s Penal Law, abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy is prohibited unless it is necessary to save a woman’s life.
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