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February 24, 2004

NAACP Board Takes Historical Pro-Choice Position
Board unanimously supports woman's right to equal access to family planning materials
For the first time in its 95-year history, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Board of Directors has endorsed the principle that women have the right to equal access to family planning materials, information and choice when it comes to birth control.

Board Chair Julian Bond said, "This is an issue of equal rights, and we are pleased to join those insisting on a woman's right to control her own body."

The Board, during its quarterly meeting February 21 in New York, unanimously approved a resolution that also urges "all who believe in equal rights" to attend the "March for Women's Lives" pro-choice rally in Washington, D.C. on April 25, 2004.

The resolution, introduced by Board member Rupert Richardson, noted that 80 years ago, Dr. W.E.B. DuBois, one of the association's founders, said every woman must have the right of procreation "at her own discretion."

Moreover, the resolution said: "A woman denied the right to control her own body is denied equal protection of the law, a right the NAACP has fought for and defended for nearly 100 years."

Public opinion surveys indicate that women of color seek abortions at rates higher than their percentage in the population and overwhelmingly describe themselves as pro-choice.

Founded in 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) The NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its half-million adult and youth members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities and monitor equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.

http://www.naacp.org/news/releases/BoardProChoice022404.shtml