Michigan medical students take a stand to support abortion care

As a nurse, I wish abortions were rare. Nevertheless, the risks of making abortions illegal put women at risk of morbidity and death. In my opinion, the general public does not understand about how making all abortions illegal will cause many innocent women to suffer as a result of being forced to carry to term an unwanted pregnancy or others that may be forced to bear a fetus conceived as a result of rape or incest. 

Echo report published in Medscape Nurses

Dozens of University of Michigan medical students walked out of their white coat ceremony Sunday as a keynote speaker began to talk. 

A Twitter video showing the walkout has gone viral. By press time, the video had garnered more than 9.5 million views. 

In fact, the walkout comes days after more than 340 medical students at the school had signed a petition opposing the selection of Michigan assistant professor Kristin Collier, MD, for the ceremony because of her anti-abortion views, according to The Michigan Daily.

In response to the incident, a medical school spokeswoman told Medscape Medical News that Collier was chosen to be speaker "based on nominations and voting by members of the U-M Medical School Gold Humanism Honor Society, which is comprised of medical students, house officers, and faculty."

The press statement continued, "The White Coat Ceremony is not a platform for discussion of controversial issues. Its focus will always be on welcoming students into the profession of medicine. Dr. Collier never planned to address a divisive topic as part of her remarks. However, the University of Michigan does not revoke an invitation to a speaker based on their personal beliefs."

The university further stated that it remains committed to providing reproductive care for patients, including abortion care, which remains legal in Michigan following the recent US Supreme Court ruling overturning abortion rights, according to the statement by Mary Masson, director of Michigan Medicine public relations.

The state has an abortion ban, but a recent court order temporarily blocked enforcement of it, according to the statement.

In her speech, Collier recognized the divisiveness of the issue. "I want to acknowledge the deep wounds our community has suffered over the past several weeks. We have a great deal of work to do for healing to occur. And I hope for today, for this time, we can focus on what matters the most, coming together with a goal to support our newly accepted students and their families."

Following applause from the remaining audience, she continued to offer advice for the incoming students about how to thrive in their chosen profession.

Collier, a graduate of the medical school and director of its Health, Spirituality and Religion program, has 15.2K Twitter followers. She has been known to post anti-abortion sentiments, including those cited in the students' petition.

"While we support the rights of freedom of speech and religion, an anti-choice speaker as a representative of the University of Michigan undermines the University's position on abortion and supports the non-universal, theology-rooted platform to restrict abortion access, an essential part of medical care," the petition reads, in part.

The petition states that the disagreement is not over personal opinions. "We demand that University of Michigan stands in solidarity with us and selects a speaker whose values align with institutional policies, students, and the broader medical community. This speaker should inspire the next generation of healthcare providers to be courageous advocates for patient autonomy and our communities."

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Republican Red Herrings

Republicans are masters at creating "red herrings". In other words, they're experts at diverting attention from their true intentions by stirring up trouble to divert attention from their real goals.

Abortion is an example.  Abortion is an extraordinary response to an unwanted pregnancy.  Yet, under the guise of a "right to life" morality, the Republicans take extreme positions on a woman's right  to an abortion, as though they are the moral regulators of all things sexual.  An obsessive right wing opposition to abortion is as difficult to understand as the issue is complicated.  

When a woman is raped or the victim of incest, the right to an abortion should be a reasonable, last resort, alternative to forcing her to carry a fetus created by assault.  Rather than acknowledge this reality, Republicans waste time and energy opposing all women's access to abortion, except, of course, if she can afford to travel to Mexico to pay for the procedure.  

Let's call abortion what it really is - it's an assault against poor women.  I don't know any woman who wants to have an abortion.  Yet, no one walks in the shoes of a woman who obtains an abortion.  We can counsel women to prevent unwanted pregnancy, we can adjudicate sexual assault, but we cannot completely eliminate abortions. Abortion is a red herring the Republican use to stir up a right wing agenda to prevent poor women from having access to quality health care.  

Texas State Senator Wendy Davis finally held up the red herring and disclosed anti abortion legislation as class prejudice.  She stood up to the right wing when a movement to close all safe abortion clinics was nearly passed in Texas.  

Davis showed Texans the red herring.  Abortion is a very difficult issue, but it shouldn't be a public policy that puts access to women's health care at risk.  In Texas, the abortion bill  filibustered by Senator Davis would close all safe abortion clinics, where poor women access the procedure.  This isn't about abortion. Rather, it's discrimination against poor women who can't afford to pay for services a wealthy woman can easily access.  

What's most remarkable about the Davis filibuster is that it happened at all, in conservative Texas.  Her notable effort may indicate how Texas is on the brink of a political sea turn and abortion might be the unlikely weather vane pointing to change.

Davis filibustered a bill which mirrored the U.S. Congress’ effort to pass a 20-week abortion ban .  She was as tenacious as right wing extremists are obsessive; but her efforts put a national spotlight on Republicans who, at a state level, are going after women’s rights. 

State Senator Davis has now created a 'women's spring".  Women will not be bullied...!!! is the outcome of the Senator Davis filibuster.  Clearly, most Americans are not impacted by laws preventing abortions, so it makes no sense to waste time and money opposing this extraordinary women's health procedure.

Other red herrings Republicans ingeniously have created include:

1.  Socialized Medicine - this is a red herring to oppose the progressive reforms passed in Obamacare's Affordable Care Act.

2.  Birtherism- this red herring was created to stir anti-immigrant sentiment because, in fact, it's a concept deliberately conjured up to stir hate against President Obama's father, who was an African from Ghana.

3.  Path to Citizenship - this red herring is an anti-immigration euphemism created to cause confusion about how hard working illegal immigrants can, through a daunting process, become American citizens.  It seems to me, people who entered the U.S. illegally, but work to pay $xxx.ooo in taxes and have been law abiding citizens, have a right to become American citizens.  Anyone who opposes a path to citizenship should explain how it is they, as opponents, are themselves, American Citizens and why they oppose others who want to share this right. 

4.  Second Amendment Rights - this is a red herring to protect the gun industry against regulations that mitigate the sale of deadly weapons.  People's rights to safety are secondary to the rights of gun owners who enjoy a magical immunity under the Second Amendment to own as many deadly weapons as they want to buy.  

It's sincerely difficult to understand how Republicans continue to get away with their red herring creativity.  This cunning influence over public policy is dangerous and it must be challenged.  

It's essential for Americans to vote out of office all Republicans who support extremist red herring positions where women, immigrants and citizens caught in the crossfire of guns are marginalized and devalued.  (Victims of gun violence, like the families of the children killed at Sandy Hook, are even shunned by some state legislators!)

If Republicans continue with their right wing agenda, the red herrings they create will cause their party to smell like the stinking fish who are influencing their extremism.