Georgia: Don’t Make Miscarriage a Capital Crime
- Target: Georgia Legislators
- Sponsored by: Care2.com
So far, 2011 has been riddled with bills and initiatives to restrict women’s rights when it comes to her health. But a proposed bill in Georgia is the nuttiest of all. A state representative has introduced legislation that would make miscarriage a crime punishable by death.
Rep. Bobby Franklin’s bill would require that women who miscarry prove that there was “no human involvement whatsoever in the causation” or they could become felons. The bill would also put the burden of responsibility on women for protecting the fetus from the moment of conception — even though it takes 3 weeks for pregnancy tests to become reliable. It’s estimated that up to one-quarter of pregnancies end in miscarriage and most of the time doctors don’t even know the cause.
To top it off, it would completely outlaw abortion in the state, no matter what the Supreme Court has said.
This ridiculous anti-woman bill must be stopped.
Tell Georgia legislators to oppose H.B. 1 and any laws that try to strip women of their rights.The Article: http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2011/02/miscarriage-death-penalty-georgia
It’s only February, but this year has been a tough one for women’s health and reproductive rights. There’s a new bill on the block that may have reached the apex (I hope) of woman-hating craziness. Georgia State Rep. Bobby Franklin-who last year proposed making rape and domestic violence “victims” into “accusers”-has introduced a 10-page bill that would criminalize miscarriages and make abortion in Georgia completely illegal. Both miscarriages and abortions would be potentially punishable by death: any “prenatal murder” in the words of the bill, including “human involvement” in a miscarriage, would be a felony and carry a penalty of life in prison or death. Basically, it’s everything an “pro-life” activist could want aside from making all women who’ve had abortions wear big red “A”s on their chests.
I doubt that a bill that makes a legal medical procedure liable for the death penalty will pass. The bill, however, shows an astonishing lack of concern for women’s health and well-being. Under Rep. Franklin’s bill, HB 1, women who miscarry could become felons if they cannot prove that there was “no human involvement whatsoever in the causation” of their miscarriage. There is no clarification of what “human involvement” means, and this is hugely problematic as medical doctors do not know exactly what causes miscarriages. Miscarriages are estimated to terminate up to a quarter of all pregnancies and the Mayo Clinic says that “the actual number is probably much higher because many miscarriages occur so early in pregnancy that a woman doesn’t even know she’s pregnant. Most miscarriages occur because the fetus isn’t developing normally.”
Care2 Petition – STOP ridiculous 'anti-woman bill' H.B. 1.
March 1, 2011 by
