April 18, 2003: Urge TN legislators to Vote NO on SJR127 - Constitutional Amendment Taking Away Right to Abortion under TN Constitution - Vote on 4-22 in Senate Judiciary

Dear Friends,

The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to discuss SJR127 and vote on amending our State Constitution to take away a woman's right to obtain an abortion in Tennessee. Please read the background information about each bill and call your legislators if they serve on those committees hearing the bills and tell them to vote NO.

Many thanks,
Hedy Weinberg, Executive Director

Dear Friends,

This Tuesday (April 22) the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on SJR127, which would amend the State Constitution to add a new provision to Article 1 that states "Nothing in this Constitution secures or protects the right to abortion or funding thereof." This is the third week SJR127 has been scheduled for a vote; please make sure to continue your phone calling.

Action: Contact your State Senator if he/she serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee (see list below) and ask them to protect a woman's right to privacy under the Tennessee Constitution and vote NO on SJR127. If your legislators do not serve on those committees, we urge you to still contact them and tell them that if the bills move forward they should vote NO on the Chamber Floor. You can find out this contact information at http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/senate/members/smembers.htm#Find (for Senate members) or http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/house/members/hmembers.htm#Find (for House members). If you don't know who your Senator or Representative is, go to www.congress.org and enter your zip code.

Talking Points: If SJR127 passes this session, the resolution would need to receive a 2/3 majority vote by both chambers the following legislative session in order to appear on the state ballot for 2006 elections. Were our State Constitution amended and were Roe v. Wade to be overturned, abortion could be made illegal in Tennessee.

Background: This anti-choice initiative is a result of the successful ACLU-Planned Parenthood lawsuit challenging the restrictive provisions in the state's abortion statute.

In September 2000, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that several provisions were unconstitutional and that abortion is a "fundamental right" under Tennessee's Constitution. The decision is momentous because it reaffirms the right to privacy found in the Tennessee Constitution. This was the first time that the State Supreme Court considered the issue of abortion under the Tennessee Constitution and held that it provided greater protection than the US Constitution.

Please make your calls by Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. and ask your friends, family and colleagues to do the same.

Many thanks,
Hedy Weinberg, Executive Director