March 10th is National Abortion Provider Day. As we face SB 776, it's time to take stock of how things are going for abortion providers and as a result, women's access to a safe and legal procedure. SB 776 mirrors the federal abortion ban President Bush signed into law. It would ban procedures into the early weeks of the second trimester. SB 1049 creates criminal guidelines for doctors who violate the ban. For a minute, let's overlook the fact that the legislature is spending time to pass a bill that copies a federal law already in effect in Michigan, and focus on other implications.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, in 2005 there were 51 abortion providers in Michigan and 83% of counties had no abortion provider. Of Michigan women, 33% lived in these counties. In Michigan, 5 metropolitan areas lack an abortion provider: Monroe; Jackson; Holland-Grand Haven; Bay City; Battle Creek.

Religious extremists have already succeeded in making abortion difficult for Michigan women to get. Members of MIRCRC (www.mircrc.org) are fed up. For 35 years we have heard religious extremists say abortion is morally wrong. It's time to reassure people that it's morally right to be pro-choice and pro-faith. It's time to remind people that clergy worked to legalize abortion because they saw the desperation of women with unintended pregnancies. It's time to protect religious liberty especially in very personal issues of reproductive health. It's time to raise our religious voice and defend reproductive choice!