National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers

[Content Note: Violence]

Tomorrow, March 10th, is National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers. It was named such following the assassination of Dr. David Gunn in 1996.

Dr. Gunn was murdered in 1993.
In 1993, Dr. Tiller was shot but not killed.
In 1994, Dr. John Bayard Britton and his escort, James H. Barrett, were assassinated.
In 1994, Dr. Garson Romalis was shot but not killed.
In 1995, Dr. Hugh Short was shot and killed.
In 1997, Dr. Jack Fainman was shot but not killed, the shooter was a suspect in an unnamed NY physician's murder
In 1998, Dr. Barnett Slepian is shot and killed. His murderer, James Koop, was the suspect in 1997's shooting of Dr. Fainman and the other unnamed doctor.
In 2009, Dr. Tiller was shot, again, and killed.

In 1994, Shannon Lowney and Leanne Nichols were shot and killed at clinics in MA.
In 1998, Officer Robert Sanderson was killed during a clinic bombing and nurse Emily Lyon was severely injured.

Assassination and attempted murder are only two of the dangers doctors and others who work at clinics that provide abortion services. They also face arson and bombing, butyric acid attacks, and anthrax attacks. And: harassment, intimidation, hate mail, and stalking.

The National Abortion Federation has kept a record of violence (.pdf). From 1977 to 2011, there have been:

218 arsons and bombings (1 each in 2011)
99 attempted arson or bombing (1 in 2011)
656 bomb threats (1 in 2011 -- 12 in 2010)
191 incidents of assault and battery (3 in 2011)
420 death threats (2 in 2011)
4 kidnappings (none in 2011)
15,062 incidents of hate mail or hate phone calls (365 in 2011)

There are several more categories. NAF also notes:

All numbers represent incidents reported to or obtained by NAF. Actual incidents are likely much higher. Tabulation of trespassing began in 1999 and tabulation of email harassment and hoax devices began in 2002.

1. Incidents recorded are those classified as such by the appropriate law enforcement agency. Incidents that were ruled inconclusive or accidental are not included.

2. Stalking is defined as the persistent following, threatening, and harassing of an abortion provider, staff member, or patient away from the clinic. Tabulation of stalking incidents began in 1993.

3. The "number of arrests" represents the total number of arrests, not the total number of persons arrested. Many blockaders are arrested multiple times.

There aren't many careers that would require someone to deal with sometimes constant threats, harassment, and violence. And deal with having the job itself being constantly under attack because of government intrusion and asshattery.

There are very few careers in which one must face things like this (from January of this year, btw):

Operation Rescue, an extremist anti-abortion group, has launched a website - abortiondocs.org - which lists the photographs and addresses of abortion providers, as well as maps to find their places of business. The website, which describes itself as the "largest collection of documents on America's abortion cartel," aims to list every abortion provider in the country.

Often at risk to themselves, abortion providers--the doctors, nurse practitioners, midwives, nurses, medical assistants, office support staff, escorts & volunteers--protect the lives and health of people by providing them with necessary medical care.

To everyone who does walk that path:

THANK YOU.