Bombs Won’t Win, Planned Parenthood Boss Says ‘We Have The Courage Of Our Convictions,’ President Says

Violence against clinics won’t stop the Planned Parenthood Federation of America from its mission of making reproductive health care accessible to women, says the national organization’s president.

“There are extremists out there who will stop at nothing to prevent women from accessing reproductive services,” said Gloria Feldt. “We have the courage of our convictions.

“There is nothing that will deter us from doing that.”

Feldt stopped in Spokane on Friday to offer support and thanks to local Planned Parenthood employees for showing that same courage and commitment after last year’s bombing of the Valley clinic.

The clinic was bombed and a nearby U.S. Bank branch robbed July 12. Three North Idaho men are charged with the crimes, as well as the April 1 bombings of The Spokesman-Review’s Valley office and the same bank.

Their trial is scheduled to begin March 3.

During a short news conference at the Planned Parenthood clinic at 123 E. Indiana, Feldt touched on a number of topics, including the recent bombings, the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue and this week’s United States Supreme Court rulings regarding protesters outside abortion clinics.

Repeated violence against clinics across the country won’t close them permanently, Feldt said. “We find a way to reopen.”

The Valley clinic is expected to reopen this spring, said Gayle Ekins, board president of Spokane’s Planned Parenthood. The national organization is giving its Spokane affiliate $10,000 for increased security.

Feldt said she considered Operation Rescue’s recent decision to take its anti-abortion message to Spokane high schools “quizzical.”

“I can’t image there would be any valuable result from that,” she said.

Spokane’s Planned Parenthood workers probably won’t get involved in the demonstrations unless school officials or parents ask them for help in dealing with the protesters, Ekins said.

“We have a wonderful volunteer escort system … that teaches them how to deal with protesters in a nonconfronting, sensitive way,” Ekins said.

Feldt described the recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions as a mixture of “good news, bad news.” The high court ruled Wednesday that local authorities could keep anti-abortion protesters from blocking clinic doors and driveways. At the same time, the court struck down attempts to create a “floating” 15-foot buffer zone around patients going to and from clinics.

The 54-year-old Feldt, a mother of six, said she didn’t expect the court to outlaw abortions, but she did expect constant attempts to limit access to abortion services.

“Women in the military can’t get abortions at military hospitals even if they pay for them,” she said. “Government employees don’t have abortion coverage.”

After the news conference, Ekins said she was frustrated that most discussions about Planned Parenthood clinics turned to talk of abortion. The organization offers everything from pregnancy counseling to Pap tests, with abortions accounting for less than 2 percent of the services, she said.

“Family planning is a way to prevent abortions,” Feldt said.

In fact, while much of the violence against clinics supposedly is aimed at stopping abortions, often those targeted don’t offer the procedure, Ekins said.

The Valley clinic did not perform abortions.

Security was tight outside the main Spokane clinic, with security guards roaming a fenced parking lot and lightly frisking the people who entered the building. Planned Parenthood asked that the media not report in advance about Feldt’s visit.

Ekins said she worries constantly the security might intimidate potential patients, keeping them away from the health care they need.

“We strive to strike a balance between prudence and caution and not making the place like a fortress,” Ekins said.

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