Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Hail and Bubbles, Part Two

Ok so I have some good news that I wanted to mention - it's sort of more personal than anything but I'm really happy about so I wanted to bring it up here. When I first got to the clinic yesterday J, the receptionist, asked me to come talk to her after my shift. So I did, and it turns out she is going to be away for three weeks and wants me to fill in for her! I am so excited! I'm just new at escorting but I guess because I took the initiative on the scheduling, they figured I would be trustworthy enough to do this as well. I'm mainly hoping that this sort of thing will lead to an actual job - even career - in the field. The thought of doing something for a living that I'm really passionate about is so exciting!

So yeah, just thought I'd share that.

The other thing I wanted to expand on from Part One of this post is the bubble-zone law. A bubble zone is basically an area around the clinic where the protesters aren't allowed to go. Right now they are not allowed on clinic property, but they cannot be legally stopped from standing on the sidewalk right outside and harrassing women coming in. In Vancouver the Elisabeth Bagshaw abortion clinic has a bubble zone with a 50 metre radius. There is also one outside the homes of the doctors who perform abortions there.

Recently in New Brunswick, following pressure from NAF and ARCC, T.J. Burke has expressed interest in finding a similar solution to the problem of the Morgentaler clinic protesters. There was a story in the Daily Gleaner a couple days ago saying that he is looking into trying to get a bubble zone law passed here in Fredericton - both for the Morgentaler clinic and for the doctor's house. This is very encouraging news for the clinic staff (especially the doctor, who is a wonderful person, and who has already been driven out of her practice) and for the women who come from all over the Maritimes to access abortion here in Fredericton.

If you are pro-choice, I encourage you to write to T.J. Burke and show your support for this initiative. It's definitely a step in the right direction.

1 comment:

F.B. Cabby said...

Good read! first time here, interesting stuff. I didn't even know fredericton had a clinic still open. I believe every woman should have a choice. Its their body.