ACTION ALERT — Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers
Call Your State Senators Now! The Proposed Iowa Constitutional Amendment Was Just Voted Out of the House.
Women deserve the right to make their own healthcare decisions.
House Joint Resolution 5, a proposed amendment to Iowa’s Constitution to ban abortion, was just voted out of the Iowa House. If passed, it would ban abortion and prevent public funding the event that Roe v Wade is overturned in the future. We can’t let that happen.
HJR 5, if adopted, would be published and then referred to the next general assembly (90th) for adoption, before being submitted to the electorate for ratification.
Last year, the House failed to pass the bill, putting it off until now. Please contact your legislators and persuade them to reject it again this year.
Iowa women deserve better than this. Iowa women deserve the right to make their own healthcare decisions free of interference from priests and politicians. Religious belief is never a valid excuse to push faith and dogma into laws and public policy.
Contact your legislators and tell them to vote against this amendment to Iowa’s Constitution. We include two sample letters below. Use or adapt one of them or write your own. Personalized letters are always more effective. Do it today. Conservatives in the Statehouse intend to fastback this bill. It may be the first bill approved by both houses this session.
To find your State Representatives and Senators, go to https://openstates.org/ and type in your address. Click on your legislator’s names for their emails and websites.
To sign up for future IAF Action Alerts, send a request to actionalerts@iowaatheists.org. Thank you for your support.
Credits to Agents Jena Luksatich and Amanda Dawn for the model letters.
Model letter #1
Dear [Legislator]:
I am writing to register my strong opposition to HSB 41, a bill introduced by the House Judiciary Committee that aims to eliminate the right to abortion or the public funding of abortion in the State of Iowa. HSB 41 would take away the right of a woman’s freedom to her body and life.
This legislation is a dangerous attempt to block access to safe, reproductive care. Making abortion illegal does not stop unwanted pregnancies from taking place. When abortion is made illegal, many women may look to unauthorized entities to perform the procedure. This is clearly a greater threat to life and health. For those who fear that abortion might be used as a contraceptive, studies have shown that as few as 8% of the women who undergo abortion did not use contraceptives.
I urge you to argue against HSB 41. The women in your district appreciate you standing up to protect their reproductive health and ensuring that all Iowans access to safely and legally exercise bodily autonomy. Please see that this right is preserved.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Model letter #2
Dear [legislator]:
I write today to oppose HSB41 and any constitutional amendment restricting abortion rights in the state of Iowa.
It is undisputed that the proposed amendment is a direct response to the Iowa Supreme Court's decision in Planned Parenthood v. State of Iowa. The Iowa Supreme Court followed well-established federal precedent in making their decision. It has long been held at the federal level that pregnant persons have a right to healthcare, including abortions, and that an undue burden on that right contravenes the US Constitution.
Additionally, this proposed constitutional amendment would seem to originate in religious beliefs. I oppose legislation imposing another's religious beliefs on Iowans of different or no faiths.
Finally, statistics consistently demonstrate that access to safe, legal abortions is correlated with a lower rate of induced abortions. This constitutional amendment, should it be successful, along with Iowa's recent opposition to reasonable family planning care, has the potential to result in the opposite of its aim - to reduce abortions in the state of Iowa.
Again, I oppose HSB41, and hope you will consider my opinion in this matter.
Sincerely,
[Your name]