In Jackson, Mississippi, a red state in the heart of the Bible Belt, the battle over abortion was kicked into high gear when an eight-day anti-abortion demonstration ensued in the state's capital this past summer.
On one side: activists fighting to save the last abortion clinic in the state. On the other: Operation Save America trying to shut it down.
On this edition, "Making Contact's" Sarah Olson takes a closer look at the Mississippi women fighting for reproductive justice as they try to save the one remaining abortion clinic in the state.
Featuring: Pastor Flip Benham, director, Operation Save America; Adam Tenant, Operation Save America; McCoy Faulkner, women's organizations and abortion clinics security officer and retired cop; Betty Thompson, counselor and administrator, Jackson Women's Health Organization; Michelle Colón, president, National Organization for Women-Jackson Area; Shannon Reace, Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Coalition HIV/AIDS advocate; Norma McCorvey, lead plaintiff in Roe v. Wade but now anti-abortion activist; Kim Ghandy, president, National Organization for Women (NOW); Jenni Smith, Unity Mississippi; Shauna Davie, Jackson State University student. Senior Producer/Host: Tena Rubio. Freelance Producer: Sarah Olson. Mixing Engineer: Phillip Babich. Freelance Associate Producer: Emily Polk. Intern: Alexis McCrimmon.
For more information: Jackson Women's Health Organization, 2903 North State Street Jackson, MS 39216; 601-366-2261; www.gynpages.com/jwho
National Women's Health Organization, 3613 Haworth Drive, Raleigh, NC 27609; 800-532-5383; www.nationalwomenshealth.org
National Organization for Women (NOW), 1100 H Street NW, 3rd floor, Washington, D.C. 20005; 202-628-8669 (628-8NOW); www.now.org
Feminist Majority Foundation, 1600 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 801, Arlington, VA 22209; 703-522-2214; www.feminist.org
National Abortion Federation, 1755 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20036; 202-667-5881; naf@prochoice.org, www.prochoice.org
Guttmacher Institute, 120 Wall Street, 21st Floor, New York, NY 10005; 800-355-0244; www.guttmacher.org
ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project, www.aclu.org/reproductiverights/index.html
Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Project-ACLU of Jackson, Mississippi; 601-355-6464; missrfp@yahoo.com; www.msaclu.org/mrfp/index.html
Unity Mississippi, P.O. Box 4212, Jackson, MS 39296; www.unityms.org/index.html
*Photo: Courtesy "Operation Save America." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 2007. Answers.com 28 Feb. 2007. http://www.answers.com/topic/operation-save-america
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