Navigation

The Rational Response Squad is a group of atheist activists who impact society by changing the way we view god belief. This site is a haven for those who are pushing back against the norm, and a place for believers of gods to have their beliefs exposed as false should they want to try their hand at confronting us.

Buy any item on AMAZON, and we'll use the small commission to help improve critical thinking. Buy a Laptop -- Apple

Brian Sapient on Twitter

Brian Sapient

Celebrity Atheists

List of atheist sites

Ask the atheist

Antiques and Art

'Abortion is a racist, genocidal act'

Submitted by kellym78 on March 3, 2008 - 2:47am.

That's not me speaking, but I wanted to get your attention. the author of that quote is none other than the late purveyor of bigotry Jerry Falwell's son, Jonathan Falwell, at WorldNetDaily. I was perusing the site in preparation for my upcoming blog discussion with Vox Day, another columnist for WorldNetDaily and owner of the blog Vox Popoli. (It should be an exciting exchange--I'm currently reading his book The Irrational Atheist. Stay tuned.) Apparently, Falwell is still clinging to the "Margaret Sanger was a proponent of eugenics" argument against Planned Parenthood and reproductive rights, but even more disturbing was another article I found at the same nefarious site authored by Bob Unruh, entitled "Planned Parenthood: Wanting fewer blacks 'understandable".

The surfeit of spin on this story is making me nauseous, and the actual issue at hand is even worse. An undercover "investigation" of some sort occurred during which a man called Planned Parenthoods in seven states posing as a man inquiring about ways to donate. (There is a YouTube video containing recordings here.) This investigating group has not been identified, to my knowledge, but I feel that it wouldn't be a stretch to assume that it was another attempt of those with an anti-reproductive rights agenda to demonize and defame the Planned Parenthood organization. We all know how horrible it is to offer under-privileged women access to contraception and, yes, even abortions. If the woman can't afford medical care or reliable methods of birth control, it's plainly obvious that having the child is the best course of action.

At any rate, the agent of this deception calls a PP clinic offering a donation. He moves on to ask if he can ask that it be allocated specifically to women of color. This is an accepted practice there as some may want to provide extra benefits to minority women who often aren't as financially secure or don't have health care. The person on the phone replies thus, and the fraudulent benefactor then replies that his intent is to reduce the number of black babies born due to his racist and stereotypical views. The conversations tended to become very awkward after that, and the PP employee's incredulity is often quite obvious. Like any other organization, though, there is a general agreement (as least from the available information) that the donation will be accepted. Their reasoning is completely obvious to anybody who has ever relied on donations for their ability to function, as they know how the money will be used regardless of the intent of the donor. If somebody offered us at the RRS a donation because he/she believed that we are detrimental to atheism and wants to promote us for that reason, we would likely still accept the money. Without money, any organization will die, and so long as there is no affiliation or partnership contingency, generally money from anybody will be accepted.

This has been painted in the aforementioned article, as well as others, as a gross injustice on the part of PP and cries of "racism" and "eugenics" are running rampant. Given the obvious dishonest intent and purposeful misrepresentation to the media, the people who should be harangued here are the so-called "investigators" themselves. Their biased agenda and dishonest trapping of these PP employees, whose names and office locations are published in the YouTube video, is despicable. The subsequent acceptance of this as evidence by anybody betrays the inability to utilize their collective cerebral cortices.

Is it possible that this person spoke to some employees with prejudices of their own? Of course, but that say nothing about the agency as a whole and their stance on such matters. It is relatively easy to paint people into a corner using dishonest tactics, particularly if it is completely unexpected by the victim of this fraudulent activity. The individuals writing about this matter in the vein of the aforementioned Bob Unruh have already bought the anti-abortion propaganda hook, line, and sinker, so to them, it must be quite a thrill to twist this unscrupulously gained information to suit their own purposes.

Beyond this immediate issue, I would just like to add that there is some evidence that Margaret Sanger was a proponent of eugenics or "social Darwinism"--just like many people in the early twentieth century. Her personal beliefs have not necessarily impacted the organization she founded, particularly 80 years after the fact. The fact that more black women get abortions is not because Planned Parenthood operatives are forcing these women--it's because they have an extraordinarily high incidence of poverty and familial instability. Did Planned Parenthood cause that to happen as well? Maybe they initiated the slave trade preemptively to ensure it, too.

Overall, this latest batch of anti-abortion propaganda should be offensive to any person with critical thinking faculties, and I hope that some of you will also speak out to stop this insidious meme from spreading.

Atheist Books

kellym78's blog
Login to post comments

It's just a shame sometimes

Submitted by darth_josh on March 3, 2008 - 3:10am.

It's just a shame sometimes that my ethics prevent me from offering extra money for uber-christian women to get a quiet unprotested abortion when they want one.

Warning. Next comment is very nasty.

I suppose that it is a moot point since there are more women like Deanna Laney and Andrea Yates out there.

Atheist Books, purchases on Amazon support the Rational Response Squad server, which houses Celebrity Atheists.

..... Science is the

Submitted by I AM GOD AS YOU on March 3, 2008 - 3:31am.

..... Science is the CURE .... thank god for science ....

ARGH! Bad Kelly! dont bring

Submitted by The Doomed Soul on March 3, 2008 - 4:13am.

ARGH! Bad Kelly! dont bring pro-life ads onto the RRS site

Pro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choicePro-choice

There, that should even everything out ^_^

What Would Kharn Do?

kellym78 wrote:"This

Submitted by The_Saint on March 3, 2008 - 2:29pm.

kellym78 wrote:

"This investigating group has not been identified, to my knowledge, but I feel that it wouldn't be a stretch to assume that it was another attempt of those with an anti-reproductive rights agenda to demonize and defame the Planned Parenthood organization."

The investigative group was the UCLA student-run newspaper "The Advocate". It wasn't hard to find.

I don't believe that Planned Parenthood has any sort of covert agenda to rid the world of "black babies", but the statistics are disturbing, nonetheless. African Americans represent only 13% of our population, but account for 35% of all abortions carried out in this country. It is easy to see how some can perceive this disproportion as evidence of an attempt to control the population, even though no such conspiracy exists.

The problem lies with the African American community, who's civic leaders are overwhelmingly "pro-choice", and have turned a blind eye to destruction of the family in the black community.

The Saint

Somewhat off-topic, but been

Submitted by Cali_Athiest2 on March 3, 2008 - 3:33pm.

Somewhat off-topic, but been looking carefully at the incarceration rates for African-American men on drug charges recently. It seems such a disturbing trend that so many are behind bars disproportionately to the percentage of population. It seems the war on drugs is as much a racist-genocidal act as abortion. However, those that are trying to legalize abortion are also pro-war on drugs and this seems to be somewhat contradictory. You have to love the religious right. So yes, I agree that this is an offensive reaction to a sensitive enough subject in America.

"Always seek out the truth, but avoid at all costs those that claim to have found it" ANONYMOUS

What was the 'right' answer?

Submitted by shelley on March 3, 2008 - 3:56pm.

What was the 'right' answer? for Planned Parenthood to refuse the donation?

if an organization should have a responsibly to not except ill-intentioned donations than are they also responsible for finding out the donation of every single donor?

i could just as easily call you up to share my malicious intent and credit card number as I could send you a donation without indicating a reason. insanity...

The source that I linked to

Submitted by kellym78 on March 3, 2008 - 4:12pm.

The source that I linked to implies some level of involvement from UCLA's student paper, but it isn't made clear that they were in fact behind the operation. They could have only been reporting on it.

Atheist Books

shelleymtjoy wrote:What was

Submitted by The_Saint on March 3, 2008 - 4:17pm.

shelleymtjoy wrote:

What was the 'right' answer? for Planned Parenthood to refuse the donation?

One would expect that the organization would state as a matter of policy that donations made to Planned Parenthood are used in whatever manner the organization deems necessary, and cannot guarantee that anyone's donation will go for any one specific function. Accordingly, the administrators of Planned Parenthood should have told the caller that while they are happy to process his donation, they do not condone racism or eugenics in any form, and that his donation, while appreciated, would not be used in such a manner.

But they didn't. No PP administrator refused the donation or clarified their policy on how donations are distributed, and in some cases, even sympathized with the caller's racist motivations. Now, I don't believe that Planned Parenthood has a secret racist agenda to eliminate African Americans, but it seems clear to me that the organization is at least willing to sympathize with racially motivated donors, just to get the money.

The Saint

"but it seems clear to me

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 3, 2008 - 4:26pm.

"but it seems clear to me that the organization is at least willing to sympathize with racially motivated donors, just to get the money."

Sounds like a lot of churches I've been around. Just replace "racially" with any other bias.

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

kellym78 wrote:The source

Submitted by The_Saint on March 3, 2008 - 4:30pm.

kellym78 wrote:

The source that I linked to implies some level of involvement from UCLA's student paper, but it isn't made clear that they were in fact behind the operation. They could have only been reporting on it.

Here's a link to The Advocate's web site, which clearly indicates that they developed and carried out this operation:

http://www.laadvocate.com/advocatetext.html

Lila Rose, the editor-in-chief of The Advocate, along with many other UCLA students, are now petitioning the school to cut its ties with Planned Parenthood, and has won the endorsement of Dr. Alveda King, the niece of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Saint

Sorry, double posted

Submitted by The_Saint on March 3, 2008 - 4:36pm.

[

jcgadfly wrote:Sounds like a

Submitted by The_Saint on March 3, 2008 - 4:35pm.

jcgadfly wrote:

Sounds like a lot of churches I've been around. Just replace "racially" with any other bias.

And that makes it OK in your book? Seriously--if you want to portray yourself as morally and intellectually superior to theists, you shouldn't rationalize your actions with, "theists do it, too."

The Saint

The_Saint wrote:kellym78

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 3, 2008 - 4:36pm.

The_Saint wrote:

kellym78 wrote:

The source that I linked to implies some level of involvement from UCLA's student paper, but it isn't made clear that they were in fact behind the operation. They could have only been reporting on it.

Here's a link to The Advocate's web site, which clearly indicates that they developed and carried out this operation:

http://www.laadvocate.com/advocatetext.html

Lila Rose, the editor-in-chief of The Advocate, along with many other UCLA students, are now petitioning the school to cut its ties with Planned Parenthood, and has won the endorsement of Dr. Alveda King, the niece of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Saint

Unfortunately, that usually leads to cutting ties with United Way, which screws over other charities.

I don't advocate eugenics nor do I believe PP is involved in them (see, Saint, you and I can agree on a few things). I just don't want a lot of worthy programs to lose out by this kind of overcompensation.

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

The_Saint wrote:kellym78

Submitted by kellym78 on March 3, 2008 - 5:13pm.

The_Saint wrote:

kellym78 wrote:

The source that I linked to implies some level of involvement from UCLA's student paper, but it isn't made clear that they were in fact behind the operation. They could have only been reporting on it.

Here's a link to The Advocate's web site, which clearly indicates that they developed and carried out this operation:

http://www.laadvocate.com/advocatetext.html

Lila Rose, the editor-in-chief of The Advocate, along with many other UCLA students, are now petitioning the school to cut its ties with Planned Parenthood, and has won the endorsement of Dr. Alveda King, the niece of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Saint

Well, thanks for the info then.

Atheist Books

Indeed Shelly Who cares

Submitted by HereticChick on March 3, 2008 - 8:12pm.

Indeed Shelly Smiling Who cares who the money comes from! It's not "tainted" or anything. And besides, its says "In God We Trust" all fucking over it! That should remove the imaginary "taint".

"Killing for peace is like fucking for chastity"

The_Saint wrote:jcgadfly

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 3, 2008 - 9:09pm.

The_Saint wrote:

jcgadfly wrote:
Sounds like a lot of churches I've been around. Just replace "racially" with any other bias.

And that makes it OK in your book? Seriously--if you want to portray yourself as morally and intellectually superior to theists, you shouldn't rationalize your actions with, "theists do it, too."

The Saint

Didn't say it made it OK - just familiar.

As for the other thing you said - If you've run into that here, I'm sorry. If I've done anything like that to you, I apologize.

I've never had that experience here at RRS (even as a Christian expressing doubt about my faith). I have had it at my share of churches.

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

The_Saint wrote:jcgadfly

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 3, 2008 - 9:10pm.

[double post deleted]

In any event, the net result

Submitted by totus_tuus on March 3, 2008 - 9:47pm.

In any event, the net result is Sanger's eugenic dream coming true.

I suppose we could say of Margaret Sanger that which Shakespeare has Antony say of Caesar, "The evil that men do lives after them; the good is of interred with their bones." (Julius Caesar, Act III, scene II)

Intent isn't necessary for evil to occur.

"With its enduring appeal to the search for truth, philosophy has the great responsibility of forming thought and culture; and now it must strive resolutely to recover its original vocation." Pope John Paul II

pro choice christians

Submitted by spanders (not verified) on March 5, 2008 - 1:17am.

I wandered over from the NoGodBlog and noticed this topic. It's one that I've argued a number of times with other christians on the site. I'm pro-choice without question. One of the arguments I have found compelling is McKinley's stance on the issue. If you're going to be in a debate, you may find the following useful:

http://www.elroy.net/ehr/abortion.html

echo chamber

Submitted by echo chamber (not verified) on March 7, 2008 - 9:16pm.

You should read Sanger's words, you'd be shocked. She was racist and not just against blacks but against "the feebleminded" and others who were not like herself. Native americans were and are victims of eugenicists.

Eugenics never went away, it just changed names - "bioethics".

There are many examples of modern day eugenics practices if you choose to see them. Most people have their heads buried so they don't notice the systematic poisoning of the masses.

http://endgamethemovie.com/

Yeah, it's Alex Jones so I wouldn't recommend it to women. Alex Jones tends to trigger the fight or flight response in sensitive viewers.

I'm looking forward to your

Submitted by SpellingNazi on March 10, 2008 - 5:15pm.

I'm looking forward to your debate with Vox Day.

Discussions of this topic

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 10, 2008 - 10:03pm.

Discussions of this topic always lead to an interesting question for me.

Why is it that Christians in particular (theists in general?) are so cincerned about the fetus in the womb but don't seem to give a damn about the child after it leaves said womb?

I see a lot of it where I live. "Save the pre-born" walking hand-in-hand with "Get away from me, you little homeless bastard."

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

jcgadfly wrote:Why is it

Submitted by SpellingNazi on March 11, 2008 - 2:19am.

jcgadfly wrote:

Why is it that Christians in particular (theists in general?) are so cincerned about the fetus in the womb but don't seem to give a damn about the child after it leaves said womb?

That's easy. Because they aren't concerned about the fetus. That's just their excuse. What they are really concerned about is the womb. It's about controlling women by controlling their reproductive choice.

Control reproductive choice, control the womb. Control the womb, control the woman.

So the old children's song

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 11, 2008 - 5:22am.

So the old children's song should be:

"Jesus loves the little fetuses but doesn't give a damn about you kids"

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

Wow, you really showed how

Submitted by Christ still Rules! (not verified) on March 12, 2008 - 12:25am.

Wow, you really showed how intelligent you are! No one has to have any gods or masters in this world, it's true. But once this life is over it'll be to late for those that denied Him to accept God. There is still time for everyone here. If you truly search for the truth without bias , instead of searching for the truth you want, you will find God.

Abort for Jesus

Submitted by Anonymously (not verified) on March 12, 2008 - 11:14am.

jcgadfly wrote:

Discussions of this topic always lead to an interesting question for me. Why is it that Christians in particular (theists in general?) are so cincerned about the fetus in the womb but don't seem to give a damn about the child after it leaves said womb? I see a lot of it where I live. "Save the pre-born" walking hand-in-hand with "Get away from me, you little homeless bastard."

I'll never understand why Christians are against abortion. After all, their main purpose is to save sinners from hell. Aborting for Jesus is the ultimate gift a Christian can give any potential child - it saves the potential child from sinning and guarantees the child a brimstone and pitchfork free eternity of bliss in heaven, where the baby can suckle on the loving teat of the Lord. Praise the Lord!

So Christians, save a child from hell - abort now!

"Every time a Christian chokes the chicken, he saves a kid from hell - rub one off for Jesus now!"

Christ still Rules!

Submitted by jcgadfly on March 12, 2008 - 8:10pm.

Christ still Rules! wrote:

Wow, you really showed how intelligent you are! No one has to have any gods or masters in this world, it's true. But once this life is over it'll be to late for those that denied Him to accept God. There is still time for everyone here. If you truly search for the truth without bias , instead of searching for the truth you want, you will find God.

Hi.

appeals to fear really don't work well here

"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin

Christ still Rules!

Submitted by The_Fragile on March 18, 2008 - 11:10am.

Christ still Rules! wrote:

Wow, you really showed how intelligent you are! No one has to have any gods or masters in this world, it's true. But once this life is over it'll be to late for those that denied Him to accept God. There is still time for everyone here. If you truly search for the truth without bias , instead of searching for the truth you want, you will find God.

Zzzzz....

I hope they cannot see
the limitless potential
living inside of me
to murder everything.
I hope they cannot see
I am the great destroyer.

Hurry up science .....

Submitted by I AM GOD AS YOU on March 19, 2008 - 1:57am.

Hurry up science ..... zero unwanted pregnancies and kids ..... Science cares, and that is us, as we are profoundly godly. I love life and I AM compelled by this love, as YOU. Lets love harder this thing called life. Be a scientist ......

Atheism Books.

Or, perhaps, those people

Submitted by wahern (not verified) on March 26, 2008 - 1:08pm.

Or, perhaps, those people answering the phones weren't prepared for such idiocy. People who answers phones at these places aren't expensive public spokespersons, crack salesmen, or lawyers used to sharp tongues.

How often in a conversation have you nodded your head, "Yes, yes. Yeah. Okay", unsure of the intentions of the speaker? It's very awkward. Often it's only after the conversation has ended that you realize what was being said; even if its in the middle, most people try to avert confrontation (even polite confrontation, like admitting you have no idea what the other person just said).

People who draw conclusions from pranks like this clearly believe that the person at the other end of the phone is some sort of automaton. It shows how aware of and respectful to "human life" many anti-abortionists are. Their concern isn't with actual human suffering (imperfect receptionists), but with the imaginary forms carefully constructed and reinforced in response to years of disdain for themselves and those around them.

Christ still Rules!

Submitted by Sapient on March 28, 2008 - 12:05am.

Christ still Rules! wrote:

But once this life is over it'll be to late for those that denied Him to accept God. There is still time for everyone here.

The church is lucky that after you die you will not be able to return for a refund.

Please become a Patron of Brian Sapient

Support our activism efforts by making your Amazon purchases via this link.

lemmings

Submitted by mustanggtconv65 (not verified) on April 13, 2008 - 1:18pm.

excellent article. i left religion behind in my early teens. i watched for years from the front rowphysical and mental pain and death for both of my parents. i have a handicapped son (no sympathy- he's my hero!) and with all that is unfair in life it's up to you to make life what you want it to be. religion is a money machine. facilitated through fear and intimidation. for centuries they have preyed on the starving and uneducated. any homeless person will believe anything you tell them in exchange for food!

anybody draw paralells to our education today? get them while they are too young to know better.

our society foolishly allows tax exemption for practicing religion. yet they can't keep it in their building. they have to reach out ans spread the word. the current presidential campaign started out as a sermon and which religion will leverage the future of our country. it's now down to dirty politics again.

here is my qusetion:

can somebody explain to me what is charitable about a $10million, $20 or $50 million dollar church? i have three built in my neiborhood in the last five years. that's blatant excess and time to repeal the tax exempt status of all churches. they will quickly dissolve.

for those churches that actually do charity work can easily account for every penny.

as for abortion and their stance keep it inside your church!

Navigation

'Abortion is a racist, genocidal act'

Sapient's Blog