| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | August 11, 2008 |
Washington, D.C. - Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, hailed the strong pro-choice position outlined in the Democratic National Committee's 2008 platform. Keenan served as a member of the platform committee and participated in the committee's meeting this past weekend in Pittsburgh. In addition, Keenan presented testimony at the platform drafting committee meeting two weeks ago in Cleveland.
Keenan said, "The language in this platform reaffirms, in the strongest of terms, the Democratic Party's solid commitment to a woman's right to choose as defined by Roe v. Wade. We are pleased that the party adopted language that is consistent with NARAL Pro-Choice America's work to ensure that women have access to a full range of reproductive-health options, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing safe, legal abortion. We are also pleased that, during the full platform, no debates, changes, or amendments were raised related to a woman's right to choose."
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Contact:
Ted Miller
Washington – The Human Rights Campaign, the
nation’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights
organization, issued the following statement today on the release of
the Democratic National Committee’s National Platform as prepared by
the National Platform Committee. On August 1, Legislative
Director Allison Herwitt testified in Cleveland, Ohio at the National
Platform Drafting Committee meeting. To read her testimony,
visit: http://www.hrcbackstory.org/2008/08/hrc-legislative.html.
Statement by Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese:
"This year’s Democratic Party Platform does more to address
policy issues important to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender
community than ever before. The 2008 Platform reiterates and
strengthens past support for legislation that would protect our
community, including calls for the passage of hate crimes and
comprehensive employment discrimination legislation, and the repeal of
the discriminatory "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in our nation's
military. It is historic and important to note that for the first
time this year, the platform pledges to fight discrimination based on
gender identity. The platform also supports the full inclusion of
same-sex couples and their families, with equal rights, benefits and
responsibilities. For the first time, the platform opposes the
discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act, which bars federal recognition
of even those same-sex couples legally married under state law.
The platform also supports other issues of importance for GLBT, and all
Americans, including a call for a national strategy to combat HIV/AIDS,
support for fair and impartial judges not driven by ideology, and
requirements that faith-based programs not use federal dollars to
discriminate.
The platform addresses many of our community’s critical issues, however
it does not explicitly use the words gay, lesbian, bisexual and
transgender. While this has prompted much discussion, it is our
responsibility as a community in this election year to compare this
document with the soon-to-be-adopted Republican platform and to judge
which party would best advocate for us. Additionally, we
challenge the Republican Party to, for the first time, adopt equally
supportive language.
HRC applauds the efforts of GLBT members of the Drafting and full
Platform Committees, including Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and
Diego Sanchez, the first-ever transgender member of the Platform
Committee and a member of HRC's Business Council and Boston Steering
Committee. Their presence is further testimony to the commitment
of the Democratic Party to our community."
The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights
organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender
equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end
discrimination against GLBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves
fundamental fairness and equality for all.
Citizens Committee for the
Right to Keep and Bear Arms
12500 N.E. Tenth Place
Bellevue, WA 98005
For Immediate Release: August 12, 2008
BELLEVUE, WA – The 2008 Democratic Party’s draft
platform confirms that the party still “doesn’t get it” about Second
Amendment gun rights versus the Utopian fantasy that gun control laws
will somehow make neighborhoods safer, the Citizens Committee for the
Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today.
“While promising to preserve our Second Amendment rights,” said CCRKBA
Chairman Alan Gottlieb, “the party platform demonizes semiautomatic
sport utility rifles and wants them banned, calls for anti-gun show
legislation and proposes so-called ‘common-sense’ gun laws. Many
Democrats believe bans on most guns are ‘common sense’ and they still
support the handgun ban in Barack Obama’s hometown of Chicago. Boiled
down, all it really means is that the Democrats are still the party of
gun control no matter how they try to re-package the rhetoric, and they
know it.”
Gottlieb, co-author of a new book called These Dogs Don’t Hunt: The
Democrats’ War on Guns, said the party is shamelessly telling American
gun owners that they embrace the rights of millions of shooters,
hunters and gun collectors, “but there’s a caveat.”
“The party’s gun control platform plank puts the lie to everything they
say,” he added. “As Democrats descend on Denver to nominate a candidate
who is on record in opposition to sensible concealed carry laws, we
encourage gun owners across the country, and especially in Colorado, to
remind the party that the Supreme Court in June held that gun bans are
unconstitutional. Yet here they are, calling for a ban on so-called
‘assault weapons’ even after years of experience tells us that Bill
Clinton’s ban accomplished nothing, and cost the party control of
Congress in 1994.
“Democrats want to regulate gun shows out of business,” he continued,
“even after a study done for the Justice Department found that gun
shows are rarely the source of firearms used by criminals. Gun shows
provide a forum, a gathering place for law-abiding gun owners to
discuss ideas and issues, and share constitutionally protected freedoms
of speech, assembly and the right to keep and bear arms. Increasingly,
Democrats seem averse to the exercise of these rights by anyone who
does not share their philosophy. And this is the party of inclusion?
“Democrats have an opportunity to reject and repudiate this platform,”
Gottlieb concluded. “If they do not, that tells American gun owners
everything they need to know about Democrats as November approaches.”
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