Friday, February 29, 2008

Margaret Sanger, Glenn Richardson, Autumn Kersey , Georgia and Idaho – What Do They Have in Common?

This week I received an article that detailed a UCLA student’s findings when she investigated seven Planned Parenthood clinics regarding donations they would find acceptable. Specifically, these clinics were asked about accepting donations that were earmarked to kill black babies. In each of seven conversations, the alleged donor stated that he wanted his money to be given to kill black babies so his child could be assured a place in a college when it was time for him to go. You read right, the gentleman stated he wanted to give money to kill black babies because “the less black kids out there the better” and in one of the conversations, Autumn Kersey, Director of Development of Idaho Planned Parenthood, stated that sentiment was “understandable”. She went on to state she sounded hesitant because “this is the first time I had a donor call and make this kind of request and I am excited and want to make sure I don’t leave anything out.” She actually stated she was excited that this person wanted to kill black babies! Go to You Tube and hear it for yourself! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LJVPVh5TWo

If anyone thinks this type of racism/eugenics exists only in Idaho and the six additional clinics that were called, think again.

I had heard, back in November of 2007, that Glenn Richardson, Georgia’s Speaker of the House had made comments that had similar racial/eugenics overtones. Since the Bible is clear that everything should be established with two or three witnesses and having experienced some of that racial sentiment from him in my 2006 race for the 4th Congressional District, I began to ask questions. As I asked those questions, I found that there were others that had confirmed hearing the statements. One legislator that I spoke with just before the 2008 session began on January 14th, told me he had confirmed with a House Leader that was present at the time, that the comments had been made.

I attended a meeting on February 5, 2008 with Dr. Alveda King (niece of Martin Luther King, Jr.) and four other witnesses. We heard two more representatives confirm the comments were made to them. What were the comments you ask? Well, we were told that when the GA Legislature introduced the Women’s Right to Know bill in 2006, the Speaker said that passing that piece of legislation would result in GA being “overrun with black babies”. Another Legislator stated he had approached the Speaker at the end of the 2007 session to explain a vote he was making that would impact funding to organizations like Planned Parenthood. In that conversation the Speaker indicated that if the funds for birth control were halted it would “result in the birth of more black babies” and “more black babies would be born and on the dole.

Well to say the least, Alveda and I were shocked so when I was called by the Speaker’s Chief of Staff to set up a meeting, the answer was an emphatic yes! February 12, 2008 turned out to be a sad day for us individually and Georgia collectively. The Speaker while stating he did not say the words quoted above stated he may “have said something like that”. And no matter how many times Alveda and I asked him what the “something like that” was, or even to explain how race came up in the discussion at all, he refused to answer, redirecting the conversation to the statistically accurate facts concerning black high school dropouts (over 50%) in Georgia or the abortion rate of black women in Georgia (58%). He consistently attacked one of the Legislators to whom the statement had been made indicating they were at war with one another and stating he could not understand why that legislator waited two years to say anything. At no time did the Speaker clarify his position on black births in Georgia or his feelings about blacks in general. Instead, he went to the Black Caucus the next morning and characterized me as a bitter black female because he did not support my Congressional race in 2006 (at that time he told me he could not support me because he did not want the “black voters in DeKalb County” to turn out).

Glenn Richardson had the opportunity to create a culture that valued all Georgians regardless of their race or status. He could have created a culture that promoted life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for us all. Instead, he adopted the spirit of his predecessor, Tom Murphy, by continuing to promote a racist/eugenics environment. Tom Murphy and many other legislators initially spit tobacco on the Martin Luther King Holiday bill. Glenn Richardson and those like him may as well be spitting on the babies that are aborted in Georgia.

On which side of the race issue does your legislator fall? Is he or she willing to allow black babies to continue to be killed so we will not be “overrun” with them? One of the ways we can find out is if there is a vote on pro-life measures like the Human Life Amendment that defines when personhood begins. Call your legislator today and ask him or her to get the Judiciary Sub-Committee to take the HLA off the table so you can can see where they stand on the issue. Is your legislator willing to give you a voice in this process? Does he/she trust you to vote your conscience with regard to when life begins?Ask them to help you override the voices of those like Margaret Sanger, Glenn Richardson, Autumn Kersey and Planned Parenthood. Let’s join together to silence these voices that filter life and the birth of black babies through racist/eugenics lenses. Call your legislator today.

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