Posted on 11/07/2002 8:05:02 AM PST by Doctor Freeze
Statement of NOW President Kim Gandy
With Trent Lott running the Senate and George W. Bush in charge of the White House and Supreme Court, the health and welfare of America's and the world's women and families have never been in greater jeopardy.
Hammering homeland security, Saddam Hussein and the war on terrorism, the Bush-Cheney weapon of mass distraction controlled public dialogue for the last few months. Bush's "you're either with me or you're a traitor" scorched-earth campaigning helped ensure Republican control of the Senate. Centrist Democratic pols aided their opponents with their pressure to avoid social issues and pander to corporate interests.
Women are bracing for an onslaught of judges and legislation designed to undo many of our hard-won gains and we intend to fight.
Roe v. Wade hangs by a single vote. Tipping the balance of the Supreme Court with one more extremist justice would ensure the loss of abortion rights for generations. We know that the stealth legislation disguised as "fetal protection," is really an thinly-veiled effort to deprive many more women of their reproductive freedom. And the Senate is primed to confirm a bevy of right-wing judges that will make the federal bench look more conservative than a Bush family reunion.
The Bush agenda for 2003 is no secret: further decreases in women's reproductive health options, more reductions in the already-limited safety net for the poor, restrictions on civil rights and liberties, Social Security privatization, more power for HMOs and insurers and less for patients and doctors, more lifetime appointments of religious and political extremists to the federal courts, and unfettered corporate influence over regulations that might restrain their greed. Tax cuts that benefit the wealthy will become permanent and programs that help the struggling working families who are the backbone of our nation will be slashed.
With all three branches of government controlled by one party united behind a single agenda, opportunities for advances in Congress are limited. So NOW and our hundreds of thousands of advocates will organize, organize, organize cities and towns and communities across the nation. We will work to limit the Republicans' legislative gains in Congress. And we will work with grassroots coalitions to win important protections at the state level, such as the recent enactment in California of partial wage-replacement for family and medical leave and important anti-violence protections.
As the new minority party, Democrats in Congress must abandon their "me tooism" and return to their party's roots, bringing more spirit and commitment to the debate, demonstrating leadership and real boldness on core issues. They must stop listening to the counsel of those who have blunted and stifled their message. They must do no less than engage fully in the battle for our future.
Fighting for our rights will be much harder now, but we bring to it all the passion, determination and courage that these difficult times demand. This country has a deep devotion to the concept of "liberty and justice for all" and we must gather our courage and give our time and resources to that cause.
We have taken some serious body blows, but nothing will stop us from organizing and rededicating ourselves to progress. We will do whatever it takes to protect women's lives in every city, town and district with an energized, focused and expanded constituency.
This election is a clarion call to everyone who values peace and wants a just and fair society for themselves and their children—we must join together with each other and with brave allies to defend fundamental human and civil rights and to renew our dream of full equality. We have faced and beaten formidable odds before, and we will do no less now. We must mobilize and organize as if our lives and the futures of our children and families depended on it. They do. And as our numbers double, watch out George Bush—here comes trouble!
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: REBECCA FARMER, 202-628-8669 ext. 116
These women(?) need to read a paper or get on the internet.
Somethings wrong here. Stupidity is their refuge.
Lock your doors ladies and make sure your daughters are home and in bed.
Billy the rapist is on the loose... his wife is looking for fresh meat.
This is such an insult. A clear implication that Republicans want to kill women. Are these people whackos, or what?
Fear set in among womens groups when abortion rates began to drop. This bothers them! It either meant that people were chosing to not kill their babies and it made NOW look like the extremists or republicans were to be blamed. Of course NOW members cannot look in the mirror?
When my aunt was dying, late one night my cousins and I were sitting around talking about our mothers; it dawned on us that OUR mothers all worked, and kept house, and had children -- we'd never known anything different.
And OUR mothers didn't make a big deal out of it and whine and moan. They just did it. It really made me so thankful that I was raised like I was.
I do NOT understand a LOT of women, if these people are represenative of them. And I really do NOT understand women who "love" Bill Clinton and his ilk.
The RATS will be FORCED to move WAY LEFT by these organization and it is not going to be good for them on election day 2004. Especially with the current crop of presidential candidates they have. Gore, Lieberman, Sharpton, Kerry, Edwards, Hart, and now Gephardt. Their future doesnt look bright.
Ditto on the working mom experience. I came from a two parent family. My mom lied about her education to get her job. She said she graduated from Bryn Mawr of all places! The owner of the company knew she was lying but admired her for her tennacity. During the next thirty years she worked her way up from a secretary to a executive positions and finally on the company's board. She hated whining "victim" women. She had no time for them. I think a lot of women are like her today. They just don't have much to say because they are too busy working and raising their families. As the democrats found out though, they do vote.
My mom died of Lou Gherig's disease at the age of 62 in 1992. She never got to enjoy a retirement with her grandkids. I still carry her RNC gold membership card in my wallet for steering purposes.
I'\m having a socialist moment here. I want to stael your line for my own use.
FYI...NOW’s Membership and Budget Are Grossly Overinflated
Source: INSIGHT magazine; Published: May 4, 2001; Author: John Berlau and Jamie Dettmer
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