As You Sort Out the Ballot, Protect Vulnerable Teens and Reject Proposition 85

By Barbara Lee
Member of Congress
9th District, California

As we Californians sit down with our sample ballots and begin the complicated task of sorting out thirteen different initiatives and dozens of candidates, I hope we remember that some issues are more deceptive than they seem. We are enjoying a vigorous debate on everything from tax policy to global warming, but in the midst of the honest debate, I hope EVERY Californian will see the dishonest, manipulative, and dangerous agenda behind Proposition 85.

Proposition 85, the parental notification for abortion initiative, is simply not what it seems. As an African-American woman I know I speak for all the mothers in my community when I tell you that our children are our most precious resource, and it would tear us apart inside to find out that one of our daughters faced a crisis like an unplanned pregnancy without our help and support. But the sad truth is not every home is a loving place with supportive parents, too many homes have violence, abuse, rape or incest, and Prop 85 puts teens in these dangerous homes in grave danger.

We cannot accept that scared, desperate teens from abusive homes should be made to involve a parent who may be a violent alcoholic, a drug user, or worse. Prop 85 makes no exception for a grandmother or a trusted aunt to guide a teen through this crisis, even if she is already raising and caring for the child. Prop 85 makes no exception for a minister, a social worker, or any other responsible adult to help that teen make the right decision. Sadly, in some homes the only parent in that teens’ life is the molester who caused the pregnancy -- and Prop 85 will amend the constitution to say he has a right to be involved in her decision about an abortion.

This initiative does nothing to help the over 70% of teens who already involve their parents in these decisions, but it puts at risk the vulnerable teens who should be our highest priority.

So why would such a reckless and mean-spirited initiative be on the ballot for the second year in a row? Because one man, anti-choice activist James Holman of San Diego, has spent almost five million dollars subjecting every Californian to his whims. This man says he opposed abortion without parental notification, but we need to start talking about the fact that he and his supporters oppose abortion even with parental notification -- and even in cases of rape and incest.

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