When she became pregnant as a teenager in the early 1970s, all Mary Kominsky needed was $315 and a train ticket to New York City, where abortion was legal even before Roe v. Wade.
“The horror of that day consumed me into silence,” Mrs. Kominsky says now.
Often aided by relatives or other adults, young women still cross state lines to have abortions in states that don’t require parental notification. For that reason, the women and men of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign, including Mrs. Kominsky, see the need and value in Congress enacting the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act.
The act, introduced in the U.S. Senate last week, would make it illegal to transport a minor across state lines for an abortion in a state that does not require parental notification. The act also would require abortionists to alert the parents of an out-of-state minor before performing the procedure. A similar bill was introduced in the House of Representatives by Florida Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.
“A minor is not able to have any other kind of surgical procedure without parental notification, in her home state or any other state,” said Georgette Forney, co-founder of Silent No More. “But when it comes to abortion, there is always a separate set of rules. This act would help protect minors from coerced abortion, exploitation and injury. This is common sense if you care more about young women than the abortion industry.”
“This proposed law just makes sense,” said Janet Morana, also the co-founder of Silent No More. “Teenagers who develop complications after an abortion might be tempted to let their symptoms go untreated if they are trying to keep this secret from their parents. This puts their lives, their health and their future fertility in jeopardy.”
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Since the launch of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign in 2003, 5,612 women and men have shared their testimonies publicly at over 1,195 gatherings in 48 states and 10 countries. More than 12,865 people representing 77 countries are registered to be Silent No More. Raising awareness about the hurtful aftermath of abortion and the help that is available to cope with the pain are two of the Campaign’s goals. The Campaign has over 1,718 testimonies posted here, with over 214 that are shared via video!
The Silent No More Awareness Campaign is a joint project of Anglicans for Life and Priests for Life. For more information, please visit our website:
www.SilentNoMoreAwareness.org