Beyond Tebowmania: Giving Women a Choice

Published: January 17, 2012, NYTimes.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/opinion/beyond-tebowmania-giving-women-a-choice.html?_r=1

To the Editor:

In “He’s a Quarterback, He’s a Winner, He’s a TV Draw, He’s a Verb” (This Land column, front page, Jan. 14), Dan Barry writes about a 2010 Super Bowl commercial telling how Tim Tebow’s mother decided not to end a life-threatening pregnancy and he adds, “There was no tebowing that week in the halls of Planned Parenthood.”

That suggests that Planned Parenthood does not celebrate birth or a remarkable story like Mr. Tebow’s. In fact, the Tebow story exemplifies the health care environment that Planned Parenthood promotes — a world in which women and families are supported in the medical decisions they make for themselves and their families without government interference.

As a mother of three, I can attest that pregnancy can be a precious time in a woman’s life. But there are many stories of women around the world who did not have a choice, did not have a miraculous outcome, and lost their lives for lack of access and care. Planned Parenthood exists to give those women the chance to lead the wonderful lives they might not otherwise have.

One in five women in America have relied on Planned Parenthood for health care, and that includes women of all faiths and political backgrounds.

Planned Parenthood is not about judging women — their decisions or their faith — but caring for them.

CECILE RICHARDS
President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America
New York, Jan. 15, 2012