The term “social justice” is pretty popular these days. What does it mean? Well… I’m still trying to figure that out. For those who know, I’ve got some questions for you. Specifically, does it include paying a CEO almost six hundred grand while her organization hustles poor women? Turning rape victims back over to their abusers? How about opposing laws to protect women from violence? If not, then you should probably talk to Planned Parenthood.
They’ve got other ideas.
Cecile Richards is the president of Planned Parenthood (America’s largest abortion chain), and she claims to embrace social justice. She also embraces getting paid: last year, her salary was nearly six hundred thousand dollars. Where does Planned Parenthood get its cash? Taxpayers are the biggest source, providing over half a billion dollars annually. Another money maker? Abortion. While Planned Parenthood says abortions constitute just three percent of its services, the facts show otherwise:
Planned Parenthood’s annual report reveals that it only makes one adoption referral for every 160 abortions. That’s not surprising considering Planned Parenthood gives out awards for upping abortion sales. Meanwhile, former Planned Parenthood clinic managers Abby Johnson and Sue Thayer have described the high pressure sales tactics used on vulnerable women.
And what do those women get? During a state legislative hearing, nurses Jayne Mitchell-Werbrich and Joyce Vasikonis said Planned Parenthood of Delaware’s clients were exposed to bloody tables and unsterilized equipment. They described their former workplace as a “meat market,” while clinic director Melody Meanor testified that drugs were mishandled and patients weren’t informed of positive STD tests. Also employed there was Dr. Timothy F. Liveright, an abortionist with a history of complaints:
But although Planned Parenthood might not look out for women and girls, it does look out for the men who prey on them. Denise Fairbanks discovered that when she was taken there by her abusive father. In a lawsuit, Fairbanks recalled explicitly telling facility staff he’d raped her and was now forcing her to abort. Rather than call the police, they turned her back over to him when they were done. Planned Parenthood opted to settle.
They also settled with Timothy Smith’s victim. Smith brought the 13 year old to Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains after getting her pregnant. Colorado’s Office of Children, Youth, & Families advises caution when a child under 14 “becomes pregnant or contracts a venereal disease,” but Planned Parenthood’s employees weren’t concerned: one later admitted that “being thirteen and pregnant alone is not a red flag” there. When the evidence was gone, the abuse resumed.
The victims of Edgar Ramirez, Gary Cross, Luis Gonzalez-Jose, Andrew King, John Haller, Adam Gault, and Grey David Woods got similar treatment from Planned Parenthood. Of course, abortion doesn’t just help amateur abusers; professionals also find it useful. A survey of human trafficking victims published two years ago in Annals of Health showed over half had at least one abortion while being trafficked; some had over a dozen. This isn’t something abortion staff seem too interested in: one victim reported, “No one ever asked me anything anytime I ever went to a clinic.” It might not even help if they did.
That’s what Live Action investigators discovered when they visited a New Jersey Planned Parenthood center while posing as pimps. Using hidden cameras, they caught the facility’s director offering to arrange abortions on child prostitutes who “can’t speak English” and “won’t know what’s going on.” She explained, “If they’re 14 and under, just send them right there if they need an abortion, OK?”
Further, there’s evidence a significant number of abortions are agreed to under pressure, and resisting can prove fatal: women have been shot, stabbed, burned, bludgeoned, and smothered for refusing to abort. In response, Michigan lawmakers pushed for better legislation this year to protect women from coerced abortions. Planned Parenthood didn’t.
If you’re not on board with this sort of thing, here’s a suggestion: tell Congress Planned Parenthood’s funding should go to federally qualified health centers and community health centers instead. They’re more accessible and offer services Planned Parenthood won’t.
I’m still not clear on what “social justice” is. What I do know is Planned Parenthood’s agenda doesn’t fit justice of any kind.
