BY LAURA GARZA
In the first such attempt since abortion was legalized in 1973, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to outlaw a particular abortion procedure, making it a felony for a doctor to use the method. The vote passed with a large bipartisan majority of 288 to 139 after one hour of debate.
The procedure, intact dilation and evacuation, is used rarely for late-term abortions. Opponents of abortion rights projected a graphic description of the procedure, complete with photos, and dubbed it a "partial birth abortion." While abortion foes in Congress tried to portray it as a particularly objectionable medical procedure, the sponsor of the legislation made it clear that the real target of the bill was abortion rights as a whole.
"I think this is a step forward in the battle to protect the unborn in this country," said Charles Canady, the Florida Republican who submitted the bill. "That battle will be waged over an extended period of time. The Supreme Court has in place a legal structure which protects abortion rights in this country, and something has got to be done to change that before we can put in place truly meaningful protection for the unborn."
A similar bill, introduced in the Senate by Robert Smith of New Hampshire, has yet to be voted on. President Bill Clinton has indicated he will veto such a measure as it "fails to provide for consideration of the need to preserve the life and health of the mother."
The legislation is broadly worded and employs the unscientific "partial birth abortion" terminology, leaving open to interpretation exactly what would constitute a violation of the law. This would cast a shadow of doubt over decisions made by doctors performing second- or third- trimester abortions. "I don't want to make medical decisions based on Congressional language," said Dr. Lewis Koplik.
The vote comes as opponents of a woman's right to control her body have suffered some setbacks.
On October 25 a federal jury in Dallas awarded $8.75 million to physician Norman Tompkins and his wife Carolyn, who had been subjected to a campaign of terror and harassment. They eventually moved to Florida to escape the threats and physical intimidation. The suit named three organizations, including Operation Rescue, whose director, Flip Benham, was among 10 individuals also ordered to pay damages.
In October, the Supreme Court rejected a broad challenge to federal limits placed on anti-abortion protesters, which include making it a crime to block people from entering abortion clinics.
Recent federal court rulings struck down a Utah law that barred abortions, except in limited cases like rape or incest, and restricted certain abortion methods; and overturned a South Dakota law requiring doctors to notify the parents of minors seeking an abortion. Though 28 states have a version of parental consent laws, the Supreme Court has held that there must be some mechanism that allows a young woman to bypass the requirement under certain circumstances. Measures similar to the South Dakota law were also struck down in Illinois and Montana this year.
While state and federal legislatures continue probes to further restrict access to abortion, they have not succeeded in any schemes that would ban abortion, or reverse the fundamental conquests of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling of 1973. The earlier successes anti- abortion thugs, aided by politicians and cops, scored in blocking access to clinics have largely been turned back by the mobilizations of thousands who defended the clinics.
While rightist mobilizations at the clinics have been thwarted, those most successful at imposing restrictions on the rights of women to abortion - mainstream politicians on the local, state, and federal level - have continued the attacks on women's rights. Democrats and Republicans join together year after year to maintain the restrictions of the Hyde Amendment outlawing federal funds for abortion.
The current moves in Congress are another volley in the ongoing war against abortion rights. The response by supporters of a woman's right to choose will be carefully watched.