Planned Parenthood Hits Suburbia
by Bill Beckman
The headline in the June 23rd Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reads "Planned Parenthood Hits Suburbia." Now we have public admission from Planned Parenthood that they are targeting the "well-to-do" suburbs as they "follow the population" to find customers "who can afford to pay full price." Planned Parenthood leaders "aim to rally support with upbeat marketing" and attract new customers with locations "in shopping centers and malls." Steve Trombley, the top executive in Illinois, observed, "I like to think of it as the LensCrafters of family planning."
Planned Parenthood has "opened more than two dozen quick-service ‘express centers,’ many in suburban shopping malls. Some sell jewelry, candles, books and T-shirts, along with contraception." Leslie Durgin, a senior vice president at Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains observed, "It is indeed a new look…a new branding, if you will."
Of course, we were already reaching this conclusion as we have seen the expansion of Planned Parenthood into the Chicago suburbs of Schaumburg and Orland Park and the construction under deceptive pretenses of their abortion fortress in Aurora, IL. That construction strategy was also mentioned in the WSJ article, which noted that "executives have designed the new health centers with fortresslike security" … "so no one can plow a car into the clinic."
At least one abortion provider has recognized Planned Parenthood as serious competition. "This is not the Planned Parenthood we all grew up with… they now have more of a business approach, much more aggressive," said Amy Hagstrom Miller, who runs abortion clinics in Texas and Maryland. The WSJ article notes, "Ms. Hagstrom Miller competes with Planned Parenthood for abortion patients — and finds it deeply frustrating. She does not receive the government grants or tax-deductible donations that bolster Planned Parenthood, and says she can’t match the nonprofit’s budget for advertising or clinic upgrades."
Finally, there is the Planned Parenthood policy to remove any "anti-choice" literature from customers who may have acquired such material from those "agenda-driven, anti-science" sidewalk counselors. No, the WSJ article did not cover that part of Planned Parenthood’s anti-choice strategy, but we have the evidence from Aurora.
Can this agenda-driven, anti-science behemoth called Planned Parenthood be stopped before they enshrine their anti-choice approach of "comprehensive sex education" and government funded abortions into government policy and law? Call your U.S. Congressman and request that government funding of Planned Parenthood must end. Ask for support of H.R. 4133 as an initial step in this process.