Protect Families Protect Choices Announces Opposition Campaign to Fight and Defeat Amendment 62, Definition of A Person

DENVER – Protect Families Protect Choices, a strong coalition of organizations and individuals including doctors, nurses, religious leaders and legal experts dedicated to preserving reproductive freedoms, today announced its campaign to fight and defeat Amendment 62, which recently qualified for the November 2010 ballot.

In 2008 PFPC defeated a similar measure, Amendment 48, by a 3 to 1 margin with 73 percent or 1.7 million Coloradans overwhelmingly rejecting it in every county.  Every age group opposed the amendment, and opposition was high among men and women and nearly every demographic group.

Beginning today, PFPC coalition partners will begin an aggressive grassroots mobilization effort and public awareness campaign to fight this latest assault on reproductive rights. The coalition vows to be seen and heard throughout the state leading up to the November election.

“Here we go again.  Amendment 62 is bad policy, bad law and bad medicine.  It was a bad idea in 2008 and it is still a bad idea now,” said Leslie Durgin of PFPC, also senior vice president of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.  “Amendment 62 would insert the government into the personal, private health care decisions that women and their families make every single day.”

The 2010 proposed amendment is worded slightly differently than the 2008 attempt but presents the same dangerous outcomes.  The ballot languages replaces “from the moment of fertilization” with “from the beginning of biological development” to define a person.  If passed this amendment would ban abortion even in cases of rape, incest and to save the life of the woman; and ban many forms of birth control, in-vitro fertilization and other forms of medical research.

“In 2008 voters learned that the ‘definition of a person’ amendment was an overt attempt to insert religion into law.  Many members of the faith community recognize that families often are faced with difficult life decisions – decisions that are so important only a woman in consultation with her family can make,” said Jeremy Shaver, executive director of the Interfaith Alliance of Colorado and PFPC member.  “We will fight once again to make sure Coloradans know the truth about Amendment 62.”  

Amendment 62 would also change the Colorado Constitution, impacting thousands of laws – from when property rights are granted, to inheritance rights, to who can file a lawsuit.  

“Changing our state constitution is a serious matter.  Our constitution is meant to protect us; it is not meant to be carelessly manipulated by a group closely tied to a national organization with an extreme, single-issue agenda,” said Amanda Mountjoy, a PFPC member on behalf of Republicans for Choice.

For more information please visit protectfamiliesprotectchoices.org.

For interview requests, contact Monica McCafferty or Jeremy Shaver.

Monica McCafferty                                                 Jeremy Shaver

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains         Interfaith Alliance of Colorado

303.813.7732                                                           303.733.4089

720.475.0289 (cell)

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The No on 62 Campaign is a broad-based, non-partisan coalition that includes health care professionals, members of the faith community, legal experts, reproductive health advocacy organizations, and other individuals and organizations committed to ensuring that Coloradans and their families maintain the ability to make their own personal, private decisions about important life decisions.