Take One Minute to Ring, Email, Tweet, Post, or Visit for Choice today!
Starting today and running through next Wednesday we will be focusing on one TD a day, telling them in every medium we have available that women in Ireland need abortion legislation and need that legislation to address real concerns, real needs. We aim to make it very clear to these elected officials, while they makes decisions on the Heads of Bill and vote, that the constituencies and country they come from want legal abortion and legislation to makes that possible. Below we have sample tweets, posts, emails, and messages you can send and clinic hours where relevant. Join us in sharing the reality of pro-choice views with Minister Lucinda Creighton.
The Minister of State for European Affairs speaks to women about how to get elected. She asserts that Ireland is a great place to be a woman but has been outspoken in her opposition to abortion.
As a member of Fine Gael and an outspoken opponent of abortion in Ireland, Lucinda Creighton needs to know, from the people she serves and represents, just how important real, powerful legislation for abortion is to the people she was elected to represent. As the week goes on we will focus on Fine Gael TDs from different areas, with different views but our main message is the same: We want legislation for abortion, legislation that provides for the health and rights of women, and we want Lucinda Creighton to know that we want that abortion access in Ireland.
Tell Fine Gael TD Creighton that having access to abortion in Ireland is important to you
Join as we all make the strong pro-choice voice in Ireland heard. Feel free to share your own views and ideas or have a lend of our sample messages that we included with the contact details below.
Lucinda Creighton, TD for Dublin South-East and Minister of State for European Affairs, can be contacted in all of the following ways:
1. On Twitter: @lcreighton
She has been quite active on twitter in the past.
Example Tweet: Attn Fine Gael TD @lcreighton: I want abortion in Ireland accessible for all women who want & need it. #ProChoice_ie #reprorights
2. By phone: (01) 6194561
You can ring up her office to either discuss the issue with herself or her staff, or you can leave a message.
Example Message: I am ringing to let Deputy Creighton know that access to abortion in Ireland is important to me. I want the rights and health of women respected. I want abortion in Ireland, and I call on Minister Creighton to support legislation that will allow women to get the health services they need in Ireland.
3. By visiting her clinic hours tonight:
St. Andrews Resource Centre,
114 Pearse St,
Dublin 2.
Every Thursday – 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Ringsend Community Centre,
Thorncastle St,
Dublin 4.
Every Thursday – 7:00pm to 8:00pm
4. By email: [email protected]
Example email:
Dear Minister Creighton:
I am writing to inform you that access to abortion in Ireland is important to me. I want the rights and health of women respected; I want abortion in Ireland. I call on you to hear the thousands of men and women who want legislation on abortion without bureaucracy and complicated contingencies, to hear the thousands of women who have risked their health and livelihoods to travel to other parts of Europe to get the procedure they need. I call on you to respond to those needs by ceasing your opposition to legislation that will make abortion accessible for women in Ireland.
Respectfully,
[your name]
Come back tomorrow for Day 2 of Tell a Fine Gael TD Week.
Done!
Hi there
Great idea. Just to point out that i Copy/Pasted the above “Attn Fine Gael TD @lcreighton: I want abortion in Ireland accessible for all women who want & need it. #ProChoice_ie #reprorights – See more at: https://secretweb1337tbh.abortionrightscampaign.ie/2013/05/09/tell-a-fine-gael-td-day-1-lucinda-creighton/#sthash.3xgmCjqW.dpuf” to put into twitter.
Everything from “See more….” is automatically generated and its much more than 140 characters. Not that people cant edit or write their own message, but just thought Id flag it up as a C&P that works straight of in Twitter would make it super easy for folks that are time poor.
In Solidarity
M
One of many emails sent!
Abortion is needed for the safety of women and children. A woman who takes matters into her own hands in this situation can get seriously hurt. A child can be harmed in the process of a woman trying to terminate the pregnancy on her own, not to mention the emotional well being of a mother and child born into a family that can’t afford or simply don’t want children. The romantic idea of a child and of childhood in general is a modern concept, abortion has been practised for centuries and it always will be, whether it be an at home fix or a medical procedure. In the modern world we live in a woman should have the right to choose, a father should have the right to choose. Everybody free to believe in what they like, if you’re against it then don’t you have an abortion but like a persons sexual orientation, race or religious beliefs, a person should have the right to make their own choice!
Looking great lads!
Dear Minister Creighton:
Throughout my adult life I have been a Fine Gael supported. I supported the pro-business attitude. I supported the greater transparency over the likes of FF, the grounded, steadfast principles over those of the PD’s or Labour, the proud history of working to better our country both internally and internationally, over that of SF.
I was delighted when we finally wrestled power from the corruption and cronyism of Fianna Fáil.
I felt that it would being in a change to this country, a revamp, and chance to make this country great again. A change to make up for the years of squandered chances and backroom deals carried out by the previous government.
A chance to move forward together, to create a modern Ireland that our children would be proud of, that other nations would aspire to, that would be a shining light to other nations struggling with the weight of history on their shoulders.
However, I feel that I have been repeatedly disappointed. I’ve been let down time and time again with promises made being broken so fast its been pretty difficult to keep up.
The banks, the bail outs, taxation health care, education spending, the security of our nation through the size, presence and funding of the Gardaí, all have been auctioned for the benefit of the few over the needs of the many.
Time and time again I feel that this party’s actions have left me down, and as a result of the continued disappointment, I no longer welcome FG to my door. I no longer speak-up in their favour when politics is discussed over the lunch table. I no longer object when others speak ill of the current or previous leaders of this once great organisation.
What, may you ask, was the final straw? The party’s stance on abortion.
I’m 32 years old, recently engaged, and hope one day to proudly be a father as well as a husband. I love my fianceé from the bottom of my heart, as she does me, and the though of having to go through the same tragic situation as befell Mr Praveen Halappanavar terrifies me to my core.
I was brought up in a Catholic, matricidal family. Powerful, confident women inspired me throughout my childhood an teens. My grandmother, my mother, my presidents, my teachers, councilwomen and TD’s of all political leanings – they all instilled in me the knowledge that women’s needs should be respected, their contribution to our society cherished, and their protection and rights fought for. That, unlike the teachings of some religions, a woman’s voice should hold equal power to a mans, have equal significance, and demand equal respect.
These needs, these rights, their very significance and contribution to this great nation are being blatantly ignored and in my opinion criminally neglected through the actions, stance and attitude of the current Fine Gael party line.
From the words of Minister Peter Matthews on TV, to the wording of legislation drawn up by Fine Gael policy writers, I am sicked to the core by the coldness shown by this party to such a significant portion of this nations citizens.
I’m disgusted by the instance that the words of a man like Cardinal Brady, a proven protector of a child rapist, who’s teachings stem from the ramblings of Bronze Age mystics, should be held in higher significance than the thousands and thousands of citizens who have conducted silent vigils, who have taken to the streets, not in riots, but in peaceful demonstrations, and who have repeatedly called for a democratic and compassionate resolution to this issue.
We need abortion in this country. Tragically, there will always exist certain medical situations where the termination of the fetus would be required to save the life of the mother. This is simple fact.
We need the ability to protect the living, we need the ability to reduce the risk of death for women who have already had to endure the certainty that their child will be born with a 0% percent chance of survival.
We need to protect those who have already had to suffer the indignity of rape, sexual abuse or incest. 3 phrases that boil down to the same thing – sexual violation against that woman’s will. Survivors of such horrific acts should not be punished further.
Women and girls suffering from crippling depression and suicidal thoughts should not be pushed further to the brink by suffering the indignity of having to prove themselves again and again and again to multiple non-elected “judges” to prove that they are indeed not mentally fit enough to go through the, though often beautiful, sometimes, due to other issues, mentally traumatic experience of childbirth.
I appeal to you Minister Creighton, as a woman, as an Irish woman, and as a influential member of our government, have compassion for your fellow women, see beyond the religious propaganda, outside funding by certain foreign influences, and lies being spread by certain factions within the so called “Pro-Life” movement, and see that the only compassionate, human, and caring thing to do would be to move your party towards a more Pro-Choice framework.
No one is “Pro-abortion”, just as no-one is “pro-amputation”. However, all doctors agree that in some situations, amputation is necessary to same a patient. So too abortion can, tragically, be the only option to save a woman who’s life is in severe and immediate jeopardy.
I abhor the concept of abortion on demand, but there will always be that grey area where the right choice is often the difficult one, just to overwhelming tragic circumstances. And by the time that the woman or girl affected has decided that abortion is her primary choice, we should respect that decision, for better or worse.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I hope beyond hope it in some small way does good, and helps you appreciate the views of a huge percentage of this nation.
Is mise le meas,
Jack *******
Done..
Thanks for the templates. keep up the good work. Sorry not to welll enough to be more actively involved.
Dear Minister Creighton:
I am writing to inform you that access to abortion in Ireland is very important to me. I want the rights and health of women respected; I want abortion in Ireland. I call on you to hear the thousands of men and women who want legislation on abortion without bureaucracy and complicated contingencies, to hear the thousands of women who have risked their health and livelihoods to travel to other parts of Europe to get the procedure they need. I call on you to respond to those needs by ceasing your opposition to legislation that will make abortion accessible for women in Ireland.
I want you to prevent the international shame continuing of Ireland, once again, exporting a problem. I want you and the other public representatives to recognise this hypocrisy and allow abortion on request to be available in Ireland. I also want you to know how insulted I am every time I read comments made by you about ‘abortion on demand’ ‘opening the floodgates’. Have you so little respect for the dignity and intelligence of your fellow countrywomen? Have you no compassion for other women on this island? Do you really think that women, who feel this procedure is the best course of action for them, have not agonised over it and contemplated all the options available to them at such a difficult time? Your attitudes, frankly, make me wonder whether you would not just prefer to put women back a hundred years? Your comments about ‘hysterical’ women feeds into a longstanding chauvinistic prejudice against women that pervades this country. I would have hoped that as one of the few female public servants in the Dáil you would try to move our country away from these prejudices, not furthering them.
I also ask that you ignore the threats of excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church with regards to this issue. The RCC has caused enough damage to our country without any consequences. The disgusting outpouring of moral commentary from the RCC’s representatives over the abortion issue leave my skin crawling after all the years of children and women being abused under their care and protection. The RCC has lost all rights to influence the course of this countries future. I ask that you to remember that many people on our wonderful isle do not consider the RCC, or it’s teachings, their moral compass. If the secular laws of this country have to be made to support an outdated patriarchal religion then perhaps peoples faith is not strong enough, I do not wish to live in a country where I must suffer unjust laws because others have no conviction in their beliefs.
The 8th amendment to the constitution needs to be brought to a referendum again. The views of the population 30 years ago do not agree with the views of the current generation. I want my right to vote for bodily autonomy.
I hope that you will see that the democratic step in this issue is to legislate for abortion without complicated, unworkable, and frankly degrading, contingencies; and to allow the citizens (male and female) of the Republic of Ireland to have a CHOICE.
Regards,
Kate