McMorris Rodgers’ vote draws pink protest

A sea of pink signs and T-shirts in support of Planned Parenthood spilled off the sidewalk in front of U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ Spokane office and into the street Tuesday.

More than 200 people showed up in opposition to McMorris Rodgers’ vote last week to defund the organization, which provides free birth control, cancer screenings, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases as well as abortions.

Mimi Marinucci said she has been to Planned Parenthood for health care in the past.

“They provide services that are often difficult to access for young women and poor women, and I’ve been both of those,” she said.

Some supporters wore pink patient gowns as they held signs with supportive statements from Planned Parenthood clients. Some of the statements referenced free access to birth control and one referenced an uninsured woman getting a mammogram at a clinic after finding a lump in her breast.

“This isn’t about abortion,” said Marilee Kinsella, 53. “This is about providing health care to people who have nowhere else to go.”

In a statement McMorris Rodgers released following her vote, she referenced the undercover videos from an anti-abortion group that appeared to show Planned Parenthood officials discussing sales of tissue from aborted fetuses.

“No woman should have to choose between getting the care she needs and supporting an organization that harvests baby organs,” her statement said.

The group that made the undercover videos argues that Planned Parenthood is profiting from the sale of aborted fetuses for research. Planned Parenthood officials deny the accusations.

Planned Parenthood Votes CEO Elaine Rose told the crowd that McMorris Rodgers is relying on false information in making her decision.

“She’s defunding birth control,” Rose said. “She’s defunding annual exams. She’s defunding cancer screenings. That’s what she’s defunding.”