WAO supports reproductive rights legislation

A bipartisan group of representatives and senators is backing a bill recently introduced by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) to counteract the first actions of President Bush upon taking office. The Global Democracy Promotion Act of 2001 will stop foreign non-governmental organizations from being forced to relinquish their right to free speech in order to participate in U.S.-supported family planning programs. It will also stop NGOs from being barred from U.S.-supported family planning programs solely because they provide legal health services, including counseling and referral services, with their own, non-U.S. funds.

Women's American ORT supports this legislation and urges its members to keep abreast of current events and show support for a woman's right to choose. Such rights are currently under attack. President Bush has expressed his intention to "...promote a culture of life, and that includes steps to make abortion more rare, such as parental notification, promoting adoptions and a ban on partial-birth abortions."

The president has also directed his secretary of Health and Human Services to review the safety of RU-486, also known as the abortion pill. In addition, two Republican lawmakers introduced a bill, the Patient Health and Safety Protection Act, requiring doctors to be trained in performing abortions before they are allowed to administer the pill. The House bill is HR-482 (Vitter, R-La.), and the Senate bill, S-251 (Hutchinson, R-Ar.).

Clearly, reproductive choice is being threatened on every side, and many younger women who have never known a country without choice will need direction and help in expressing their opinions and concerns.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

- Keep your members informed by inviting a speaker from Planned Parenthood or your local hospital to provide an update. Web sites worth visiting include: www.plannedparenthood.org, www.naral.org (National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League) as well as www.fight4choice.com, an affiliate site of NARAL.

- Contact the National Office at 800.51.WAORT to request copies of WAO's Public Policy Resolutions brochure, which includes our support of a woman's right to choose.

- Urge your members to fax, e-mail or snail mail your senators asking them to oppose restrictions on RU-486. Find their addresses at www.senate.gov.

An update on the digital divide

According to a study done by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, which has been tracking Internet usage and habits for a year, more than half of the U.S. adult population used the Internet last year, at home or work, as well as libraries, cybercafÌs and other public places. The online adult population has increased to 56 percent, totaling 104 million adults.

The study also found continued gains among women, minorities and adults in households earning $30,000 to $50,000 annually. Another strong group was parents with children, aged 12 to 17.

The study found that there are still two key gaps that divide the country: income and age. Only 38 percent of the poorest Americans (earning less than $30,000) had Internet access, compared with 82 percent of Americans in households earning $75,000 or more annually.

Only 15 percent of the 65+ group were online, compared with 75 percent of the 18 to 29 age group.

It is encouraging to know that the Commerce Department helped 82 black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, and institutions serving the Hispanic community by donating $5.4 million worth of nearly new, state-of-the-art technological equipment. The equipment was the surplus from the 520 temporary Census 2000 offices.

The Bush administration, however, wants to slash government programs providing computers and Internet access to poor and under-served areas. The Commerce Department budget suggests cutting the Technology Opportunities Program by about 65 percent. Some experts worry that this cut will reduce philanthropic giving by leading technology companies.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

- Discuss your members' computer use. How many have computers? How many use the Internet? If you include Internet addresses in your bulletin on a regular basis, will they use them? Do they have e-mail addresses? Do they want to receive e-mail from your Chapter?

- Enroll in a continuing education computer course at your local college, library, senior center, or through your public school district.

- Read the survey results at www.pewinternet.org and discuss how they affect your community.

- Write the Commerce Department or your senators and representatives about the effect of cutting the budget on low-income and minority groups. For addresses of federal representatives, see www.congresshandbook.com and click on "government links."

- For further reading, check out www.digitaldividenetwork.org and www.digitaldivide.gov.

Campaign for 'faith-based' social services

President George W. Bush has launched a major national drive to give broad-based public funding to churches and other religious groups to provide social services. To this end, the president has created a new federal agency, the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. This agency will work from the White House to expand government aid to religious ministries and create church-state partnerships. The executive orders call for five Cabinet departments to establish centers for these initiatives. Under Bush's plan, churches would receive tax dollars directly and be able to dispense social services along with their own religious messages. Further, some religions could be favored over others.

The President has said, "Private and charitable groups, including religious ones, should have the fullest opportunity permitted by law to compete on a level playing field, so long as they achieve valid public purposes, like curbing crime, conquering addiction, strengthening families, and overcoming poverty."

The plan is based on legislation called "charitable choice," included in the 1996 Welfare Reform Act. Although WAO currently does not have a position on this part of the legislation, there are some aspects of faith-based social services that conflict with our belief in separation of church and state. It appears that the president may be establishing a massive new bureaucracy designed to unite religion and government, in direct conflict with the Constitution.

Many organizations have issued statements expressing concerns regarding the need to insure that religious groups be required to obey employment discrimination laws, and the federal government choosing between various religious groups to operate social programs.

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO

- Go to www.pfaw.org (People for the American Way) or www.au.org (Americans United) for articles on faith-based social service. The American Jewish Committee and National Council of Jewish Women have also taken a stand. (Visit www.ajc.org and www.ncjw.org.) Print out copies of the material to hand out at your meeting, or insert parts in your bulletin.

- Contact President Bush and/or legislators to voice concern that taxpayer dollars not be used to fund social services without necessary constitutional safeguards. You can write to President Bush at: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. 20500, or send an e-mail to president@whitehouse.gov. Contact information for your representatives and senators is available at www.congresshandbook.com.

- Ask your members for a volunteer to be your Chapter's "news reporter," keeping track of all these issues and perhaps giving a short report at each meeting. There are many questions to be answered about religious social programs, and your members should be aware of what happens if the program becomes part of our society.

Can we cut taxes and reform education?

President Bush has proposed an increase in spending on elementary school reading programs of $5 billion over the next five years, and has said that student testing is critical to enabling parents to hold teachers accountable for the education of their children. The plan envisions increasing federal spending on elementary and secondary school education by $47.5 billion over 10 years.

Women's American ORT believes these plans will improve public education to a great extent. However, the plans also include "other educational opportunities" (i.e., vouchers). These "opportunities" would allow parents to use federal funds for educational alternatives to local schools.

At the same time, the President is seeking to slash individual taxes by $1.6 trillion over the next decade. There are many who fear that such a sweeping tax cut will result in less money budgeted for public education if the economy takes a downturn.

President Bush's education package includes many needed reforms, but WAO's Resolution on Education in a Democracy states that we "continue to oppose all school vouchers, both as a church and state issue and as a serious drain of funds needed to maintain and improve our public education system."

WHAT YOUR CHAPTER CAN DO:

- Publish bulletin articles on WAO's support for public education.

- Check out www.pta.org, www.jewishpublicaffairs.org and www.nea.org (National Education Association).

- If your Chapter appoints a news reporter for current events, she can also report on progress in Congress as the budget and education reform bills are discussed and voted on.

- Encourage your members to urge their legislators to oppose the "other educational opportunities" (i.e., vouchers) sections of the bill(s).

Back to Newsletters