PUBLISHER'S NOTE: In recent years, I have taken on the theme of 'criminalizing reproduction' - a natural theme for a Blog concerned with flawed science in its myriad forms - as I am utterly appalled by the current movement in the United States (and some other countries) emboldened by the overturning of Roe Versus Wade, towards imprisoning and conducting surveillance on women and their physicians and others who help them secure a safe abortion, on the basis of sham science (or any other basis). I can’t remember the source, but agree totally with the sentiment that control over their reproductive lives is far too important to women in America - or anywhere else - so they can participate equally in the economic and social life of their nations without fear for loss their freedom at the hands of political opportunists and fanatics. (Far too many of those those around these days.)Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog. —————————————————————— PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "If the premise isn't chilling enough, the fine print makes it even worse. The bill appears to clear the way for anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers to run the registry: House Bill 807 states that Missouri will hire outside "contractors" to run the system—specifically ones with a "proven record of providing resources to expectant mothers and children." Sound familiar?———————————————————————— STORY: "Missouri Bill Would Create Registry of Pregnant Women "At Risk" of Having An Abortion," by Jessica Valenti, published by 'Abortion, Every Day,' on February 19, 2025. (Jessica Valenti describes herself as: "Feminist writer, NYC native. 8 books, 1 kid & a lot of opinions. My latest book, Abortion, is out now: prh.com/abortion."GIST: "Legislation Watch: Well this is a nightmare: A new Missouri bill would create a state-run registry of pregnant women the government deems "at risk for seeking an abortion." If tracking pregnant women wasn't dystopian enough, the Republican-sponsored legislation would also give people interested in adopting babies access to this registry—because what's more on brand for Republicans than turning pregnancy into a state-monitored marketplace?"We're looking at something like e-Harmony for babies," adoption attorney Gerard Harms told the House Children and Families Committee. Harms apparently worked on the bill alongside its sponsor, Rep. Phil Amato. I don't think I need to explain why this is terrifying. Missouri Republicans are proposing a government database to track pregnant women they suspect might want an abortion. But how would the state decide who makes the list? What qualifies someone as "at risk of seeking an abortion"? And why in the ever-loving fuck would they hand over these women's information to anyone? If the premise isn't chilling enough, the fine print makes it even worse. The bill appears to clear the way for anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers to run the registry: House Bill 807 states that Missouri will hire outside "contractors" to run the system—specifically ones with a "proven record of providing resources to expectant mothers and children." Sound familiar? Crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) already receive millions in funding from Republican-led states, prey on vulnerable women, and have deep ties to evangelical adoption agencies. Many also run 'maternity homes'—residential facilities that seek to shame and control pregnant women, and pressure them into terminating their parental rights. And let's not forget: Republicans in multiple states are also pushing to "streamline" adoption processes, aka making it easier for the state to terminate people's parental rights. Meanwhile, these centers have a long history of tracking and misusing women's data. It wasn't long ago that Abortion, Every Day revealed how Heartbeat International—the country's largest network of crisis pregnancy centers—was lying to women about how their personal information was being stored and shared. Knowing all of the above, I'll tell you what this Missouri bill sounds like to me: Republicans creating a system that targets vulnerable pregnant people they deem "unfit," coercing them into giving birth and surrendering their parental rights, then placing their children with families it considers more 'worthy.' I think we all know the race and class implications here, too. What's more, the bill also says that the groups offering these services "shall have qualified immunity from civil liability for providing such services." In other words, they could track, manipulate, and exploit pregnant women without fear of lawsuits. Policy attempts like this are nothing new: We've watched Republicans like then-Senator Marco Rubio push for a state-run website to collect data on pregnant women—all while claiming to 'help women.' I'll keep you updated on Missouri HB 807, but I'm hoping the backlash against it will make the bill too poisonous to pass. But as always, Republicans are making clear what kind of future they want—we'd do well to listen." The entire story can be read at: |
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
