By JEREMIAH G. DYS
CHARLESTON -- Picture this. A young woman, appearing to be about 13 years old, stumbles into a medical clinic. Her hair has been pulled out in places. Her clothes torn. She bleeds from her face, has scratches all over her torso, and bears bruises that are the hallmarks of sexual abuse. Her face expresses the fear that is unique to someone having just been raped by a man more than twice her age.
Now picture this. A young woman, appearing to be about 13 years old, walks cautiously into a medical clinic. Her hair is finely kept. Her clothes immaculate. There are no signs of blood, no scratches, or signs of abuse whatsoever. Her face expresses the fear of having to reveal that the man with whom she has just had sex –- a man more than twice her age –- is going to be a father.
Both situations constitute the rape of a child. Both showcase the horror of forcing (physically or mentally) an innocent child to grow up way to fast. Yet, the real difference may only be seen in the health care provider's response.
When a young woman staggers into a clinic looking as she does in the first scenario, nurses rush to her side to provide care. A "rape kit" is immediately ordered by the attending physician and before she can notify her HMO, the police are on the scene, working to develop leads to apprehend the scum who raped her.
But, in the second scenario, the clinic is owned by Planned Parenthood. Not only do they refuse to follow their legal duties and report this instance of statutory rape, they teach this junior high kid how to circumvent laws requiring parental notification. They joke about how they think her "boyfriend" –- make that "sexual predator," a man more than twice the age of his victim cannot seriously be called a "friend" to this child –- should fund the purchase of a pill that would induce a miscarriage.
This is not hypothetical. Twice in a month, Planned Parenthood of Indiana –- the same outfit selling gift certificates for abortion services this past Christmas -– was caught on video portraying this exact scenario. Neither time, did the purported "champion of women's health" report the rape of this young woman to the police, parents, or powers that be. In further defiance of the law, they even walked her through the steps of how to find ways around telling anyone about her "problem."
Every innocent life is priceless. A person's potential only matters if they are given the opportunity to reach it. But, you would be wrong to focus here only on the innocent life of the pre-born child.
Instead, the focus ought to be upon the innocent child caught in an inexplicably painful scenario. The response of the recipient of more than 330,000,000 of our taxpayer dollars is to become an accomplice to a felony. If it were any less criminal Planned Parenthood's actions would be medical malpractice!
Here is revealed the ugly underbelly of the abortion industry. Dealing in shades of gray and whispers, Planned Parenthood treats innocent life –- the pre-born and victims of rape –- with abandon. The clinic that feigns concern for a woman's health compounds the mental injury of statutory rape with the added indignity of suffering a medically induced miscarriage alone in the family bathroom.
This is not healthy for our children. Born or pre-born.
Dys is the president and general counsel of the Family Policy Council of West Virginia. For more information, visit www.familiypolicywv.com.