| February 25, 2008 | Volume 83, Number 9 | |
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Contraception billVirginians should be grateful that the state Senate has rejected a bill that would have required public schools in the Commonwealth to teach methods of contraception to its students. Senator Donald McEachin who represents Charles City County as well as parts of Henrico County and Richmond City, and is in his first term as a state senator, sponsored the bill (SB 155) which called for “the use of Food and Drug Administration approved methods of contraception” to be taught in the classrooms. And what would have been on the FDA-approved list? Among the list of contraceptive efforts are surgical sterilization, the morning after pill and even a spermicide which the Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization have warned against. Needless to say, abstinence — the least intrusive method of contraception — was not included on the list. This bill, if passed, would have ignored the objection of parents who would not want their child to receive such instruction. Presumably many those of parents would have been Catholics who know that the Catholic Church clearly teaches against contraception. In fact, this message came up during the floor debate when one state senator said that if it were passed, Catholic children who attend public schools would be subjected to instruction that sharply contradicts what their parents are trying to teach them at home. All parents have a basic parental right to pass on their religious values and their church’s teachings to their children. Public schools should not thwart that right. The Virginia Catholic Conference worked hard to defeat the bill and its efforts were successful. The bill was defeated by a decisive 22–17 margin. Jeff Caruso, executive director of the VCC, told The Catholic Virginian that the Conference had done direct lobbying among the senators. In addition, nearly 400 people responded to the Conference’s legislative alert asking the legislators to vote against the bill. Their voices were heard. Legislators who spoke during the floor debate AGAINST the bill were Senators Newman, Obenshain, Blevins, Houck, and Cuccinelli. We are grateful to them for opposing the bill which had clearly crossed a dangerous line. Sadly, Mr. Caruso reports that Sen. McEachin’s bill is not in isolation. Similar legislation is being introduced in other states as well and it will likely resurface here. Catholics must remain vigilent in future sessions of the Virginia General Assembly.
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