18 newspapers in Colorado have spoken out against Amendment 67, a personhood amendment being decided by voters tomorrow which would ban all abortions in the state – including in cases of rape, incest, or to save a woman’s life – as well as end in-vitro fertilization and restrict access to common forms of birth control like the pill and IUDs.
The 18 newspapers include the Denver Post, the state’s most popular paper garnering more than 10 million digital page views per month and read regularly by more than 610,000 readers. The Denver Post Editorial Board called Amendment 67 “a radical measure that would undermine constitutionally guaranteed reproductive rights.”
Many of the local editorials opposed to Amendment 67 touch on how dangerous it would be for women and doctors in the state. The state’s media giants – who have watched as voters rejected similar measures twice before – also aren’t holding back. “Amendment 67 is wrong for women and wrong for the state of Colorado,” the Steamboat Pilot said. “Amendment 67 deserves to go down in flames,” Sky Hi Daily News wrote.
National papers have also weighed in. The New York Times Editorial Board wrote, “Amendment 67 in Colorado is a modified but no less unconstitutional version of the preposterous ‘personhood’ proposals Colorado voters overwhelmingly rejected in 2008 and 2010… The wording advertises the initiative as protecting women, when, in fact, it would do the opposite.”
Colorado’s voters feel just as strongly. Students across the state are working to ensure that Amendment 67 doesn’t pass, and many are doing so in conjunction with the Feminist Majority Foundation’s Feminist Campus program. Last month, FMF Board Member Dolores Huerta championed the Vote No on 67 campaign at a rally in Denver. More than 80 faith leaders in Colorado have also strongly opposed Amendment 67.
Amendment 67 would amend the Colorado constitution to define “person” and “child” in the state criminal code and Wrongful Death Act to include “unborn human beings.” As Gaylynn Burroughs, Feminist Majority Foundation Director of Policy & Research, explains in the Fall 2014 issue of Ms. Magazine:
If passed, Amendment 67 would threaten abortion rights, birth control, fertility treatments and some medical treatments for critically ill pregnant women – and open up the possibility of criminal investigations into miscarriages. All pregnant women’s bodies would become potential crime scenes.
Colorado voters can vote by mail, as long as the ballot is received by 7 PM on November 4, or in-person at polling centers through Election Day tomorrow. Find more information on how and where to vote here.
Media Resources: Vote NO 67 Campaign 10/31/2014; The New York Times 10/13/2014; Steamboat Today 10/11/2014; Feminist Newswire 10/6/2014; The Denver Post 10/2/2014; The Tennessean 10/2/2014; Ms. magazine Fall 2014; Feminist Campus Voting Guide
