INDIVISIBLE Lambertville NJ / New Hope PA

Author: Indivisible Lambertville / New Hope

  • Recap: Indivisible Lambertville/New Hope at the Hunterdon County 4-H Fair

    Recap: Indivisible Lambertville/New Hope at the Hunterdon County 4-H Fair

    Contributed by Deb Kline.

    Another year in the corner booth at the Hunterdon County 4-H Fair has come and gone, and we are ever so grateful for all of your support. Every year it gets better! Expanded interactive opportunities included Vote Your Values and Civics Trivia, which helped bring people into the booth and initiate conversations. For those who were wondering, Equal Justice for All, was the winner out of the five voting opportunities, followed by healthcare and supporting farmers in a time of climate change. We also have a new mascot: Liberty the Llama was loved by many – especially those under 3 feet tall, including children and animals. Look for new Liberty the Llama and other pins at the Community Gathering swag table, and check out the photos from the fair on the homepage of  our website .

    Featured Swag

    If you worked or stopped by the ILNH booth at the Hunterdon County 4-H Fair, you had a first look at our newest swag: Reusable, freezable, foldable water bottles with a design resisters everywhere will love. Perfect for travel and hiking — and canvassing –, you can use the carabiner to hang from your belt or backpack, then roll it up when finished.  Check them out at our Community Gathering – only $5.00 each. 

     

     

  • ILNH FYI – Updates and Upcoming

    ILNH FYI – Updates and Upcoming

    • Sept 9-13:  Indivisible national Defund Hate week – more here:  https://indivisible.org/resource/defund-hate-toolkit
    • Sept 11:  Vote Forward voter registration letter party at Sharon Hallanan’s house, at 7 pm – please ask for address
    • Sept 13:  Fatima Mughal on immigration at the United Way Community Volunteer Center in Flemington, at 6:30 pm – hosted by Hunterdon County Anti-Racism Coalition
    • Sept 14:  Meet Bucks candidates at 1340 Bridgeton Hill Road in Upper Black Eddy, at 4 pm – hosted by Bucks County Democratic Committee
    • Sept 15:  Picnic / Rally Celebration: All of Us as One Against PennEast at Cavallo Park, at Noon-3 pm – hosted by New Jersey Sierra Club and others
    • Sept 15:  Our next community gathering at 66 Wilson St in Lambertville, at 3 pm
    • Sept 18:  Civil rights group meeting in Lambertville, at 6:30 pm – please ask for address
    • Sept 19:  Governing body of the City of Lambertville at the ACME, at 7 pm
    • Sept 20:  An evening with Ro Khanna, at 6:30 pm – RSVP to kristin@northamptondemocrats.me 
    • Sept 20-27: Global climate strike, including climate action week at Rutgers
    • Sept 21:  What will it take to get to zero carbon? at the main Hunterdon County library on route 12, at 1:30 pm – hosted by our friends at Indivisible: Garden State Values
    • Sept 21:  We the People March in Washington – Rally Bus from Lambertville:  https://rally.co/booking/102060/18503/trips
    • Sept 21:  March for Puerto Rico in Philly 
    • Sept 21:  Peace Fair in Lahaska
    • Sept 22:  Changing the Conversation training and canvass – ask to join this FB group to participate:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/408982943309298/
    • Oct 7:  Healthcare Springboard at the ACME, at 7 pm
    • Oct 9:  Civil rights group book club discussion in Lambertville, at 6:30 pm – book is “Solitary” by Albert Woodfox, please ask for address
    • Nov 5:  ELECTION DAY 2019
    • More info here, if you’re on FB:   https://www.facebook.com/groups/246330049121690/events/

  • The Need for a Movement Toward Reproductive Justice

    Contributed by Diane J. Abatemarco, PhD, MSW

    ILNH held its first Springboard on Reproductive Rights on Tuesday, July 9th  at the Kalmia Club in Lambertville. The Springboard featured a panel of experts moderated by Diane Abatemarco, including: 

    Taylor Austin, Pennsylvania Community Engagement Coordinator for The Women’s Centers, a group of independent abortion providers with five clinics across four states. 

    Casey Olesko, Communications Director for Planned Parenthood of Northern, Central, and Southern New Jersey and Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey.

    Marlene Pray, an Education and Training Consultant with over 20 years of professional, community, non-profit management and board leadership in community organizing, sexuality education, social justice and human rights, who lives and resists in Doylestown, PA. 

    The objectives for the Springboard included: 1) learning more about the issues from experts doing the work, 2) identifying tactics for activism that are suited for elevating our work, as outlined by the National Indivisible organization, and, 3) building an abortion rights action campaign for our activist community of over 1,200 people.  

    What we learned:

    Since the Supreme Court handed down its 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade, states have enacted laws to deconstruct, codify, regulate and limit the conditions and circumstances a woman may obtain an abortion (see https://www.guttmacher. org). 

    New Jersey, under Governor Murphy, has been working diligently to support Planned Parenthood.  Other states like Pennsylvania, however, are more restrictive.   

    Reproductive justice was discussed. Reproductive justice, as defined by Sister Song, a national organization, is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities.  SisterSong believes to achieve this right we must address intersecting oppressions (e.g., race, poverty, classism, misogyny, etc.)

    Many activities in support of reproductive justice were identified during the Springboard, among them is the importance of talking with local, state, and national legislators about supporting safe abortion and Planned Parenthood, doing away with the Hatch Act, and creating an ILNH action plan to respond wisely when needed to protect abortion in the U.S.   

    ILNH volunteers Ana Slack and Cynthia Ruffner raised their hands to be Activators for ILNH’s future work in reproductive rights and justice.  Watch for an announcement for an upcoming meeting in August to begin to build our reproductive justice work in ILNH.  For questions reach out to Ana Slack, Cynthia Ruffner, Cindi Sternfeld, Sarah Gold or Diane Abatemarco.

    ILNH volunteer, Diane J. Abatemarco, PhD, MSW, is a professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Pediatrics at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. You can reach her at abatemarcodj@gmail.com.

  • Just the Facts

    Contributed by Olga Vanucci

    • There are about 900,000 abortions in the U.S. each year, a 40% reduction since 1990.
    • That’s 18.8 abortions for every 100 pregnancies.
    • The number of abortion providers has dropped from a high of 2,918 in 1982 to 1,671 in 2014.
    • The number of deaths annually in the U.S. resulting from abortions has declined from 2,700 women in 1930 to about 200 in 1965 to around 10 currently.
    • 88% of abortions take place in developing countries.
    • 49% of abortions in developing countries are unsafe. 
    • 6.9 million women are treated annually in developing regions for complications from unsafe abortions.

    Sources:  

  • Civics 101 – Reproductive Rights Under Fire

    Contributed by Amara Willey

    In the crucible of reproductive rights, the threat to Roe v. Wade is already being waged. Should the Supreme Court overturn that historic court precedent, whether a woman has the right to choose abortion would become a states’ issue.

    In preparation for that, at least 13 states have passed or are considering laws that would make abortion illegal. Trigger laws, or state legislation that will become active should the Supreme Court overturn previous decisions about reproductive rights, are being put in place in a number of places. Some states, such as Arkansas and Louisiana, have created legislation that will make abortion illegal. This can work both ways though. Other states, such as New Mexico and Vermont, have created laws that will protect a woman’s right to choose. For example, New York lawmakers passed the “Reproductive Health Act” in January, which protects access to abortions after 24 weeks if the fetus is not viable or if there is risk to the mother’s health.

    Recent presidents have been using executive orders as a way to bypass Congress on certain issues. Just like laws, executive orders can be found to be unconstitutional. One of the first orders President Donald Trump signed reinstated the “global gag rule,” which prevented U.S. funding to international nongovernmental organizations that offer or advise on a wide range of family planning and reproductive health options if they include abortion.

    State governors can also use executive orders in this way. In January, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed an order that gives all women, regardless of income, the ability to make their own decisions about their reproductive health. Last year Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered insurers in New York to cover over-the-counter emergency contraception for women — better known as Plan B.

    Although perhaps the most famous, Roe v. Wade is not the only court precedent for women’s reproductive rights. More than 15 other cases have been heard by the highest court in the land regarding right to choose and contraceptive access. For example, in the 1971 Supreme Court case, United States v. Vuitch, a doctor challenged the constitutionality of a District of Columbia law permitting abortion only to preserve a woman’s life or health. The Court rejected the claim that the statute was unconstitutionally vague, concluding that “health” should be understood to include considerations of psychological as well as physical well-being. The Court also held that the burden of proof should be on the prosecutor who brought charges, not on the doctor. 

    Meanwhile, all of the Democratic candidates are aligned in their support for reproductive freedom, while Trump seems to be using the issue as a way to rally his base. In a recent CNN poll of Iowa Democrats, abortion ranked slightly ahead of recognizing climate change as the greatest threat to humanity. In order for reproductive rights to be protected through Federal law, it seems likely that Democrats will need to hold the majority in both the House and the Senate.

    Resources: