Madison, WI – This week, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin Foundation launched the second phase of a joint media campaign to educate the public about legislators’ position on rape victims having access to emergency contraception (EC) to prevent pregnancy and safe, legal abortion. Some legislators’ position on these issues is so extreme that rape victims could literally be left with no choices after a brutal assault.

The second phase of the "How Much Time Should She Do?" campaign features a new radio ad in the La Crosse media market to educate voters about these issues and to encourage the public to contact their legislators to find out what there positions are on rape victims having access to EC in hospital emergency rooms and access to safe, legal abortion.

A 2007 poll shows that 84% of La Crosse voters oppose a law that would prohibit all abortion in Wisconsin, even in cases of rape, incest and danger to a woman’s health. Similarly, 82% of voters in La Crosse supported requiring all hospital emergency rooms to inform rape about EC and to dispense it upon the request of the patient.

The radio campaign features a rape victim speaking about how she needed support and choices following her assault and how some legislators want to deny her access to pregnancy prevention and criminalize her if she sought an abortion. The media campaign poses the question to these anti-choice legislators: If abortion becomes a crime again in Wisconsin, how much prison time should women serve for having one?

"Wisconsinites do not want to go back to a time when abortion was a crime," said Chris Taylor, Political Director of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin. "We are committed to educating the public about legislators’ position on supporting rape victims having access to EC and to safe, legal abortion. Some legislators want to leave rape victims with no choices. They want abortion to be a felony even if a woman’s health is in danger, even if she is a victim of rape," concluded Taylor.

If abortion is outlawed, women and their doctors will be criminals – regardless of the circumstances. Efforts to clarify the conflict in our current Criminal Abortion Statute to ensure rape victims are not threatened with prison time were rejected by 54 Assembly representatives. (AB 710 AA2 Vote). Although Wisconsin statutes also contain a conflicting provision that women who choose abortion will not go to jail, this conflict would leave the final determination as to what penalties women suffer to a judge. Physicians who provide abortions would be guilty of a felony and subject to prison time and fines.

"Abortion is a personal decision, not a criminal act," said Carmen Marg-Patton, Political & Programs Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin Foundation. "Outlawing abortion and criminalizing doctors won’t end abortion, just make them extremely dangerous. If good doctors aren’t there for women, who will be?"

Learn more at ppwi.org or prochoicewisconsin.org. Paid for by Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin Foundation.