WHEREAS:

AFSCME has long supported individual liberty and privacy and has opposed governmental intrusion that, invades personal privacy and physical integrity; and

WHEREAS:

In a religiously pluralistic society, freedom must include the right of each person to follow the dictates of his or her own conscience, and to act in accordance with his or her own religious beliefs; and

WHEREAS:

AFSCME has been a staunch advocate of equality for women; and

WHEREAS:

True equality cannot be achieved if women do not have the right to make the ultimate decision in all matters affecting their physical health; and

WHEREAS:

The rights of women upheld in the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade are now being endangered by state legislative initiatives as a result of the court's decision in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, Inc.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:

AFSCME opposes any legislation that diminishes the rights of women provided by the Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

That AFSCME reaffirms its opposition to efforts by politicians and judges to intrude in the personal decisions and choices that women make affecting their reproductive activities; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

That AFSCME reaffirms its faith that in a free society all individuals will make the correct decisions affecting them and their families in the light of their own moral and religious beliefs.

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED:

That the delegates of this 29th International AFSCME Convention urge the AFL-CIO to expeditiously adopt positions that oppose any diminution of the rights of women as recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade.

SUBMITTED BY:

International Executive Board

Myron L. Miner, President and Delegate
AFSCME Local 304, Council 28
Seattle, WA