Abortion regulation group to change tactics in Minnesota
The state's largest anti-abortion group, and a very powerful state lobbying group, will take a different approach to its work at the state Capitol next year.
The group plans to push the state to offer $5 million in grants to already existing anti-abortion pregnancy centers to make it easier for women who are pregnant to avoid having an abortion.
"This is about doing something positive," said Scott Fischbach, executive director of the MCCL. In the past decade, the group has been seen mainly pushing for limits on legal abortion and providers of abortion.
The money would fund a $1 million public information campaign about the pregnancy centers' services and provide $4 million to the for pregnancy centers so they can help pregnant women and new mothers with health care, job training, housing and other services.
Traditional opponents of the MCCL greeted the proposal with a mixture of skepticism and surprise.
Tim Stanley, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota, said funding the pregnancy centers might not make fiscal sense. He also said he suspected the measure was designed as a diversionary tactic from the MCCL's other priorities. But Stanley did see something positive in the measure.
"If we don't have to have a battle over abortion it looks good to me," he said.
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Posted by Editor at December 23, 2004 02:31 PM
