Feud and Fuel But No Rest for Abortion Fight
By BRIAN LIBERATORE

Article appeared Jan. 22, 2003 in the news brief section

Thirty years after Roe v. Wade -- the Jan. 22, 1973 Supreme Court decision that ruled women had a Constitutional right to abortion -- the Roes and the Wades have been reduced to jousting over jargon: NARAL, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, formerly the Abortion Rights Action League, is changing its name to NARAL: Pro-Choice America. Meanwhile, Concerned Women for America (CWA), the country’s largest pro-life organization, in their self-proclaimed “struggle against spiritual forces of darkness,” has condemned NARAL for the name change. CWA spokesperson Brenda Anglin says changing the name does not disguise what NARAL does: “It’s still a machine for killing babies.” NARAL field director Francesca Cantarini says “Pro-Choice America” was added to remind their supporters that they are in the majority. “People you know believe in [pro-choice] too,” she says. “You shouldn’t be ashamed of what you believe in.” Otherwise, the terms of the debate remain constant: Anglin refers to NARAL as pro-abortion; CWA prefers pro-life. NARAL describes itself as pro-choice and considers CWA an anti-choice organization. Out on the street, the protest methods haven’t changed either: Joe Parente of North Versailles, with the decidedly anti-abortion Rescue Pittsburgh, says his group already marked the anniversary of Roe with pickets on Jan. 18 in front of the Downtown women’s health clinic, which offers abortions. “It comes down to the fact that you’re killing a life, you’re killing a child -- to me it should be that simple,” says Parente. “There is no clear answer as to when life begins,” counters Cantarini. “That’s up to the woman.” Anti-abortion legislation may gain new life now in both the state’s General Assembly and in Congress: Republican majorities are said to be eyeing new restrictions on abortion methods, locations and permissions. Cantarini says that while she fears for the future of the Roe ruling, she thinks Governor-elect Ed Rendell can keep more drastic anti-abortion legislation from Pennsylvania’s books.