Up North Progressive

It was a cold December night in 1986 when Planned Parenthood on West Michigan Avenue in Kalamazoo, Michigan, was firebombed by an unknown terrorist. The Up North Progressive lived in an apartment at the time close enough to be awakened by the explosion. That morning the shock of seeing half of the building destroyed in the fire and later, Howard Peak in front of the clinic picketing just like he and his followers did every morning resolved supporters of the health clinic to support rebuilding it so they continue providing women and men in Southwest Michigan with the important health care services the community needed.

Kalamazoo Planned Parenthood survived two more attempts by terrorists to burn the clinic down: In 1989 and again in 2001. Michigan Right to Life and other anti-choice groups never stop attacking Planned Parenthood for one of the services out of hundreds the organization provides. Anti-choice people will resort to any form of violence if it means they can stop women from making their own health care choices, be it burning down clinics or murdering doctors who perform reproductive health care procedures.

In Michigan, we now have the rape rider law that requires women to anticipate being raped and becoming pregnant from that rape if they choose to terminate the pregnancy. Michigan Right to Life lied by claiming the Affordable Care Act would pay for abortion. The fact is no federal money has paid for an abortion in the United States since 1976. Anti-choice supporters don’t bother with things like facts when they have an agenda.

Today, Planned Parenthood is under attack from the liars again. Anti-choice politicians want to defund Planned Parenthood and are even willing to shut down the government again to force their will onto the American people, despite the majority of Americans wanting Planned Parenthood to remain funded. Wear Pink, turn your facebook profile picture pink, do whatever you can to support Planned Parenthood today.