Thursday, January 29, 2009

Upcoming events...

There are some exciting workshops and events coming up in the next few months, check these out:

February 11th - Tulsa Reaches Out: Inclusion of the GLBT Community presented by Tommy Chesbro, M.H.R., AASECT and VP of Education for Planned Parenthood of Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma.
The program is free and is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Youth Services of Tulsa, 311 South Madison. Call 918-858-4656 for more information.

February 10th through February 17th - National Condom Week!
Planned Parenthood of Central Oklahoma celebrates National Condom Week both on college campuses and in PPCO's five clinics to promote safe sex during the week of Valentines Day. For more information call 528-0221 or click here.

February 18th - Women's Coalition Advocacy Day; This non-partisan organization offers workshops and information on advocacy and issues related to women and children.

March 23rd - Women's Health Day at the Capitol
Come rally with folks from women's health related organizations on the 4th floor rotunda from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 23rd. For more information contact Michael at 528-0221.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Obama Expected to Overturn Global Gag Rule!

Jumping in feet first, President Obama is considering an executive order to overturn the Global Gag Rule on Thursday, the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

In 2007, I attended a Planned Parenthood conference in Washington D.C., where Presidential candidate Obama spoke eloquently about the health and well being of his two daughters...protecting their hopes and dreams by promoting women's health issues while in office. As a mother of two daughters I can't tell you how relieved I was to hear President Obama "gets it."

Lets hope Oklahoma legislators will do some soul searching regarding reproductive rights in Oklahoma before they vote on bills which would harm women's health.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Interested in Running for Office?

Interested in appointed office? Want to learn more? Click on this link to access WCF Foundation’s Appoint Her, an online resource center geared towards women looking for new challenges. The site includes the following:
 Why appointed office is critical to policy at the state and local level
 Women’s representation in appointed office today
 A state directory with links to information on the appointments process in each state
 Sample job descriptions, including the type of work, time commitment, remuneration
 Sample job “ladders” demonstrating accomplished women’s path to appointed office

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Roe v. Wade Commemoration Event

Planned Parenthood of Central Oklahoma will commemorate the 36th Anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision with on Thursday, January 22nd from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Oklahoma City Community foundation, 1000 N. Broadway in Oklahoma City. The event will include guest speaker Dr. Carol Mason. Dr. Mason is associate professor of English and director of the Gender and Women’s Studies Program at Oklahoma state University. Her talk is titled “Promoting Reproductive Justice in Red States.”

“Roe v. Wade” is a powerful reminder that politicians should stay out of our families’ personal moral and medical decisions,” Anita Fream, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Central Oklahoma said. “Planned Parenthood of Central Oklahoma has spent the last 70 years operating under the belief that the ability to control your own fertility is a fundamental human right.

“There are so many individuals in Oklahoma who have no idea that more than 20 bills are introduced every year by anti-choice legislators that limit our right to choose,” said Fream. “We are hoping to educate as many individuals as we can and to build support for protecting our right to decide when and whether or not to have children. Our ultimate goal for all women, men and families is for every child to be wanted and loved.”

The cost is $10 and includes drinks and light refreshments. Space is limited. For more information or to make a reservation, please contact Planned Parenthood at 405-528-0221.

Monday, January 5, 2009

The Ineffectiveness of the Virginity Pledge

Hmmm. The Washington Post reports a federal survey found "that more than half of youths became sexually active before marriage regardless of whether they had taken a "virginity pledge," but that the percentage who took precautions against pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases was 10 points lower for pledgers than for non-pledgers."

Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, wrote a commentary for the Huffington Post website on the same study. “At this point, it's hard to imagine how much more data the government and Congress need to collect to come to the conclusion that just telling kids to not have sex isn't working. The more that abstinence-only programs stress the failure rates of condoms and contraception, the less likely young people are to protect themselves against pregnancy and infection. What the vast majority of parents will tell you is that they want comprehensive sex education for teens in school, that includes abstinence but also information about birth control and preventing STDs.”

Terry at Get R.E.A.L. Oklahoma has some interesting insight also...