The Pregnant Women Support Act was created by the Democrats for Life of America and introduced into the Congress by Representative Lincoln Davis of Tennessee.
It is, according to Democrats for Life, "a comprehensive package of federal legislation and policy proposals that will reduce the number of abortions... While both Democrats and Republicans talk about reducing the number of abortions, Democrats for Life of America offers real solutions to make this goal a reality. With bold new ideas, sound research and policy arguments, contains proven policy suggestions to dramatically reduce the number of abortions in America."
In their 2005 book, Take It Back: Our Party, Our Country, Our Future, Paul Begala and James Carville praise Democrats for Life their work. In the book they say the Act "is built around seventeen concrete policy proposals that would reduce the number of abortions.... We believe these proposals would do more to prevent abortions than all the speeches, all the marches and all the campaign ads the pro-lifers have used over the past 30 years." They go on to call it "both good politics and, we think, good policy."
When introducing the bill Davis was joined by Republican lead cosponsor Rep. Chris Smith and Reps. Harold Ford, Jr., Charlie Melancon, and Dan Lipinski. Other original cosponsors include Reps. Marion Berry, Allen Boyd, Jerry Costello, Mike Fitzpatrick, Tim Holden, Marcy Kaptur, Mark Kennedy, Dale Kildee, Dan Lipinski, Jim Marshall, Mike McIntrye, Alan Mollohan, James Oberstar, Solomon Ortiz, and Colin Peterson. Organizations and Individuals who have sent statements in support of the bill include the National Association of Evangelicals, Sojourners/Call to Renewal, US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Americans United for Life, Democrats for Life of America, National Council on Adoption, Life Education and Resource Network, Redeem the Vote, CARENET, Tony Campolo, founder of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education, Joe Turnham, Chairman, Alabama Democratic Party, U.S. Senator Bob Casey, and actor, Martin Sheen.
Famous quotes containing the words pregnant women, pregnant, women, support and/or act:
“Pregnant women! They had that weird frisson, an aura of magic that combined awkwardly with an earthy sense of duty. Mundane, because they were nothing unique on the suburban streets; ethereal because their attention was ever somewhere else. Whatever you said was trivial. And they had that preciousness which they imposed wherever they went, compelling attention, constantly reminding you that they carried the future inside, its contours already drawn, but veiled, private, an inner secret.”
—Ruth Morgan (1920–1978)
“Because humans are not alone in exhibiting such behavior—bees stockpile royal jelly, birds feather their nests, mice shred paper—it’s possible that a pregnant woman who scrubs her house from floor to ceiling [just before her baby is born] is responding to a biological imperative . . . . Of course there are those who believe that . . . the burst of energy that propels a pregnant woman to clean her house is a perfectly natural response to their mother’s impending visit.”
—Mary Arrigo (20th century)
“... the majority of colored men do not yet think it worth while that women aspire to higher education.... The three R’s, a little music and a good deal of dancing, a first rate dress-maker and a bottle of magnolia balm, are quite enough generally to render charming any woman possessed of tact and the capacity for worshipping masculinity.”
—Anna Julia Cooper (1859–1964)
“An ordinary man will work every day for a year at shoveling dirt to support his body, or a family of bodies; but he is an extraordinary man who will work a whole day in a year for the support of his soul. Even the priests, men of God, so called, for the most part confess that they work for the support of the body.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Awareness has changed so that every act for children, every piece of legislation recognizes that children are part of families and that it is within families that children grow and thrive—or don’t.”
—Bernice Weissbourd (20th century)