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Audio: Cory on Women’s Autonomy and Our Freedom from Compelled Speech

I’ll never have to make the choice to continue or end a pregnancy. I don’t work for Planned Parenthood. But I recognize that Senator Al Novstrup’s Senate Bill 110, which characterizes Planned Parenthood’s statements of fact as a crime, attacks not only women’s right to control over their bodies and doctors’ right and professional obligation to practice good medicine but everybody’s right to free speech.

I said so yesterday morning to House Health and Human Services, which yesterday consisted of eight men and three women:

House Health and Human Services opted for right-wing religious propaganda over the Constitution, approving SB 110 on a 9–2 party-line vote. Thank Democratic Representatives Steven McCleery and Jamie Smith for opposing South Dakota’s further infringement of women’s right to bodily autonomy and all South Dakotans’ right to intellectual autonomy.

Signs supporting reproductive rights at ACLU table in the Rotunda, Pierre, SD, February 12, 2018.
Signs supporting reproductive rights at ACLU table in the Rotunda, Pierre, SD, February 12, 2018.

7 Comments

  1. jerry 2018-02-14 13:18

    Al and the rest of the roypublicans all fall into the same category that women have faced since before this was even a colony. Senator Elizabeth Warren addressed Pocahontas today in front of an Indian organization. She has explained how people like Al and NOem and the rest of the crooks and liars have used that fable, that has not only been hurtful for Native women and men, but also, I think, all women in general. http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2018/02/14/read-text-elizabeth-warren-speech-native-americans/ovAjQq28SbyqiDXnOp1rNK/story.html?s_campaign=breakingnews:newsletter Horrific things are said about Native women including derogatory names for creeks and other locations. Al belongs in a museum with the rest of the misogynists to show what relics they are and how harmful they are to a civilized society. . South Dakota continues to show disregard towards women with hate speeches like Al and company perform like the trained carnival act they are.

  2. Debbo 2018-02-14 20:44

    Very well done Cory.

    So the legislature is mad that PP tells patients they are reading something mandated by the lege? Seriously? Ohferpetessake.

  3. Jason 2018-02-15 00:30

    Debbo,

    Do you feel that pain should not be tolerated?

  4. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2018-02-15 07:21

    I did my explaining, Jason. The Legislature is trying to criminalize statements of fact and reasonable evidence-based argument about scientifically dubious claims. Would you like the Legislature to throw you in jail for questioning my statements of fact? Would you like my fellow Democrats and me to take over the Legislature and throw you in jail for constantly trying to derail blog discussions to your preferred prefab talking points (since you’re not creative or intelligent enough to deal with the creative and challenging topics you encounter here and need to be “re-educated” into true critical thinking so you can make more informed decisions in public discourse)?

  5. Ryan 2018-02-15 15:24

    Cory, I believe Jason wants you to explain why the laws of 198 nations are the way that they are. Please, go ahead – it’s totally not a stupid request at all, and it certainly isn’t way outside the scope of the original post. Certainly not.

    But hey, Jason asked; you are personally obligated to satisfy each of his many naive inquiries, for reasons that are none of your business.

  6. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2018-02-16 03:39

    Ryan, the request is another unreasonable attempt to distract from the main thesis of the original post. Jason doesn’t want to talk about arguments about specific South Dakota issues that he can’t win with the prefab generic arguments he gets from his national right-wing fake news and that he actually has to think about.

    I am under no obligation to explain the laws of other countries. The existence of those laws in other countries has no impact on our analysis of the morality or Constitutionality of Senate Bill 110. Justice Scalia would have thrown a fit over Jason’s suggestion that my interpretation of SB 110 and the First Amendment must somehow depend on international law.

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