'Oh death, won't you carry me over'

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BEHIND THE LINES "Mother, oh mother, come to my bed Place a cold towel upon my head My head is hot and my feet are cold Ole devil's gonna get my soul-Oh death, Oh death, won't you carry me over 'til another day."

That's a song my grandmother and mother used to sing to us children when we were small. We lived in Lexington, Ky., and my family came from the Kentucky mountains. There were at least nine or 10 verses, and "Grandmaw" would sing every one of them. The song got grimmer as it went along; but we kids loved it.

I used to always ask why this young woman was dying, and I would get a different answer every time. If it was raining outside, my grandmother would say it was because the young woman went out in the rain and got all wet. If it was snowing, she would say it was because she went out into the snow, got too cold, and caught consumption.

It was years before I got what seems like the real reason for her dying so young. My mother told me, right after I had the first of two illegal abortions, that the young woman in the "Oh Death" song died from an abortion. She wasn't trying to scare me, because I had already returned from the hospital for emergency treatment for my illegal abortion. She was just remarking on why she thought the young woman had died so young.

Many women die The Center for Disease Control estimates that 150,000 women die each year from illegal abortions. That does not count other disabling effects because of anti-abortion laws in many countries. Women who live through illegal abortions are often sent to jail if they get caught having had an illegal abortion. Many of them are apprehended when they apply for emergency treatment at a local clinic or hospital.

Before the Roe v. Wade ruling by the Supreme Court in 1973, millions of American women desperately went to illegal abortionists, placing their lives into the hands of incompetent amateurs. And if Roe v. Wade is overturned, millions more will do so again.

Even if the Supreme Court "only" rules that states have the right to limit abortions—by requiring teen-agers, for example, to get parental consent, or women to get their husband's or lover's consent— many women will again be driven to illegal abortionists. Many will die.

It is an outrage that Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, who has been appointed by President Bush to head up the Department of Health and Human Services, has stated that he supports the overthrow of Roe v. Wade.

This creature Sullivan was approved by the Senate-with only one vote against. And that single vote was by Senator Jesse Helms, who thought that Sullivan was "too liberal" on abortion. (Sullivan had said that he supports abortion in the case of incest, rape, or the likely death of the mother.)

Not one Democrat or Republican voted against him. Not one of them had the decency to even mention the danger to the lives of thousands of women if abortion is made illegal, not to mention the added expense— no small matter to millions of women.

(Ironically, Congress, which confirmed Sullivan almost unanimousiy, is completely covered by health care, including hair transplants, face lifts, fat removal— anything they want, legally and safely, and free of any charge whatsoever.)

Pro-choice mobilizations Worst of all, the near-unanimous approval of pro-Death Dr. Sullivan will give a powerful impetus to the misnamed "Right to Life" and "Operation Rescue" gangs, which are mobilizing around the country to block women from exercising their Constitutional and human right to choose.

On April 2 in San Francisco and April 9 in Washington, D.C., hundreds of thousands of pro-choice supporters will demonstrate to those politicians that the vast majority of people in this country support legal abortion. Every poll has shown this to be the case.

Moreover, pro-choice activists will be using those marches to recruit reinforcements necessary to defend abortion clinics from the "Operation Rescue" goon squads. Every mobilization by these gangs against women's right to choose needs to be met with countermobilizations. By outmobilizing them, we will discourage gangster tactics which violate our rights.

On April 2 and April 9, thousands of young womencoming into action for the first time-should join the National Organization for Women and other organizations dedicated to the preservation of Roe v. Wade. April 2 and April 9 will be the first big countermobilization, but it will be only the beginning.

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WE WILL DECIDE MATTERS OF PREGNANCY OCT-4