To the editor: I am absolutely dismayed to read that a full spectrum abortion clinic has been kicked out of Beverly Hills. As Angelenos and Californians, we should be ashamed. How can we be considered a sanctuary state if we don't fight extremists in our own backyard? Any of us with a uterus and of reproductive age could end up needing a clinic like this. All it would take is one serious pregnancy complication or change in our health. How would we feel if we couldn't access it?
There are few clinics providing this kind of necessary medical care in the country. We could have had the next one here in “blue” Los Angeles. Instead, local politicians, most of whom proudly boast of their pro-choice bona fides, caved in to terror. Shame, shame, shame.
Jessica Craven, Los Angeles
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To the editor: As a long-time Beverly Hills resident and board-certified OB-GYN, I am outraged not only by the actions of Beverly Hills city officials who, in complete disregard for the state Constitution, acceded to the demands of an extremist anti-abortion group, but also by the city's use of the police to help carry out this campaign against women's rights.
We must protect ourselves from extremists who want to illegally control women's bodies, and we must also prevent our over-armed and over-funded police from collaborating in this attack.
Michael S. Broder, Beverly Hills
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To the editor: Thank you for the article about the “four yentas” who stood up to the city of Beverly Hills in their fight to preserve women’s reproductive rights in the face of attacks by anti-choice activists. I was appalled by the conduct of city officials, who caved to pressure from a group of outsiders who threatened to cause civic and economic disruption. This group came to Beverly Hills with the specific purpose of preventing the DuPont Clinic from operating a legal business in a building that already housed one such clinic.
It is also an embarrassment to the building's owner. The fact that the city gave the group of outsiders an immediate hearing and gave in to their demands, while denying access to the clinic's representatives, who were genuine tenants of the city, is offensive.
Judith Marcus, Pacific Palisades
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To the editor: In my youth (late 1960s and 1970s), birth control was talked about in terms of contraception, not postconception. Despite advances in medical science related to pregnancy management and contraceptive options, many couples today choose chemical abortion as a method of contraception.
The article claims that 5 million women have used abortion pills since the FDA approved the pills 20 years ago. As a man, I can only imagine the deep pain a couple must feel when they decide to terminate a fetus. Or the regret that inspires a woman to turn to Dr. Delgado and his abortion intervention with progesterone injections.
No one is perfect and unfortunate things happen, but if reasonable measures are taken, the possibility of having to make such painful decisions will be reduced. Morality and conscience must be apolitical and present in all people. Having the right to do something does not mean that it is the right thing to do.
James Sipin, San Luis Rey
