Rally For Abortion Access In PEI

We told you last week that there have been some rumbling in PEI about needing better access to abortion.

It’s the only province that doesn’t offer them locally — two doctors need to give permission, and then a woman has to go to a different province. The only exception is women who have “serious medical health conditions.”

This past Saturday there was a rally in Charlottetown with over 350 people in attendance. Kate McKenna of the PEI Reproductive Rights Organization said:

• People came up to me and told me they learned so much at the rally and that they had no idea what their rights were, no idea what their options were, which for me, really, at the end of the day, was the whole point.

Abortion is legal in Canada, although there are differences across provinces, and pro-choice groups are thinking of taking this to court if the local government doesn’t give them what they want.

I hope the local government realizes that they should give women access to abortion. It’s legal in Canada and forcing women to prove they need an abortion to two doctors in rural areas, travel long distances, and take time off work costs money and is psychologically damaging. It’s time PEI started following the rules.

Contact the author here: mack@morningquickie.com