What I Am Doing With My Tax Refund

Article by William Sullivan

Let me start by saying no one likes paying taxes. Receiving pay stubs and seeing social security and Medicare taken out of our hard earned money is brutal. Thankfully, I am a poor college student with only part-time income. Thanks to our tax code I ended up with a small refund.

At first I was thinking of using it towards my first ink or maybe some music or perhaps even a PlayStation Vita or Mass Effect 3. Then I was reading the paper and came across the headline: “GOP Opposes Violence Against Woman Act.” My jaw physically dropped. The GOP’s war on woman has been raging since to Tea Party wave in 2010. Several states have passed laws requiring an ultrasound before abortion can be performed. Five states have since gone out of the Roe v. Wade decision and outlawed late-term abortions. Virginia used new building code regulation to close Planned Parenthood Clinics. The House of Representatives nearly shut-down the government over Planned Parenthood funding.

The war on women has gotten far uglier in recent months. Rush Limbaugh called women who use contraceptives and women who expect employers to pay for their birth control “sluts and prostitutes” and when pressed on abortion in cases of rape and incest Rick Santorum said “women should make the best out of a bad situation.” Neither of these things make me particularly proud of my country. Nothing is as offensive to me as the push back in Congress against the Violence Against Women Act, a piece of legislation that was last renewed in 2005 and expired in 2011. It delivers resources, expertise, and prosecution to domestic violence victims; who thought beaten and raped partners could be thrown under the bus by the GOP?

I’m tired of the GOP depicting men as sexist pigs. It is time to support our female friends and end this culture war. Ron Paul has talked about how he doesn’t support a welfare system and that charitable donations in the private sector should help citizens through hard times. If corporations are people and money is free speech then let us raise our voices; drown the GOP with charitable donations to Planned Parenthood and let the private sector support the organizations we want. They may try to cut funding for Planned Parenthood but that can’t stop we, the people from supporting the organization we need and want.

A lot of lies and misinformation have circulated about what Planned Parenthood is and what they do. One congressman went to the House floor in tirade screaming that 90% of the services Planned Parenthood provides is abortion but this is far from the truth. Only 3% of the services Planned Parenthood are abortions; planned Parenthood provides contraceptives to millions of young people. These tools have prevented many pregnancies as well as stopped the spreading of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI’s). Planned Parenthood also provides STI treatment and testing. For some women Planned Parenthood is the only place they have to get screened for breast cancer and get medicine to prevent these diseases.

I do not believe there should be a divide between the Pro-choice and Pro-life camps. We need to come together and agree that we are all Anti-Abortion. Not the actual procedure, but the point where a woman has to put that option on the table. No one, especially a teen, should have to make that decision. So if you are like me and are Anti-Abortion, join me in supporting Planned Parenthood. Even as the GOP attempts to cut funding and close our organization we can stand up and let our money speak. We need Planned Parenthood.

Like Will's writing? Check out his blog at: http://youngthespian42.blogspot.com/