Only a few days into Alexis McGill Johnson's installation as the permanent president of Planned Parenthood on June 26, the organization announced it was removing the name of its founder, Margaret Sanger, from its Manhattan clinic.
Planned Parenthood cited its decision due to Sanger's well documented "racist legacy" and her support for the philosophy of Eugenics (a form of racial profiling for purposes of birth and pregnancy termination).
It reminds one of the City of Dearborn's decision to remove the statue of Orville Hubbard from the grounds of City Hall.
But there is a difference. Whereas Dearborn clearly renounces racism, it has in recent years opted for progressive leadership and even Hubbard's children and grandchildren do not subscribe to his racist strain, Planned Parenthood retains the spirit of Eugenics. It is more than fair to ascribe the sentiments of the so-called pro-choice movement in America to Planned Parenthood, the country's number one agent of abortion. A by no means marginal sentiment of pro-choice voices are fond of the argument that it's preferable to end a pregnancy than have a baby on welfare.
That these voices resort to cold practicality in the face of a moral issue is telling.
Moreover, a purge of anything related to Margaret Sanger cannot cleanse Planned Parenthood of its legacy of Eugenics.
Younger people might believe this was a long time ago, but many of us are old enough to remember the Planned Parenthood presidency of Alan Frank Guttmacher, who led the organization from 1962 until his death in 1974.
In terms of history, this is recent.
Not only did Guttmacher advocate Eugenics, he even served as Vice President of the American Eugenics Society while head of Planned Parenthood. Indeed, it was noted that Guttmacher was more resolute than was Sanger in the advocacy of Eugenics (and abortion).
Alas, it is incumbent on me not to ignore younger readers and accept their demand for analysis of a more current situation. Planned Parenthood of today attempts to minimize its central theme of abortion.
The organization is fond to emphasize that abortion accounts for only 3 percent of its services, citing the undeniable programs it offers in cancer screening and additional medical attention more legitimate than abortion.
As the old saying goes, statistics don't lie but people lie with statistics. Truth be told, though abortion services account for only between three and four percent of Planned Parenthood's services, the percentage of Planned Parenthood patients receiving abortion is between 13 and 14 percent.
That is because most abortion recipients take advantage of the other services offered by Planned Parenthood, thereby increasing the percentage of non-abortion services and doctoring the statistics.
What about the current apparatus of Planned Parenthood?
Its defenders insist abortion is a medical issue and not a political issue. But this assertion is ironic.
Look no further than Alexis McGill Johnson, a trained political scientist whose presidency of Planned Parenthood came in the wake of the ouster of Leana Wen, a trained physician allowed only eight months to serve as president.
Planned Parenthood cannot be denied credit for its many services which do indeed preserve life. But as ironic as it may seem, Planned Parenthood is a lot like the National Rifle Association (NRA), despite the opposing political camps. The NRA does a great job promoting gun safety and responsible firearms ownership.
On the other hand, its agenda is dominated by its resistance to sensible gun laws intended to curb the proliferation of weapons in society.
In a similar pattern, Planned Parenthood undermines its abundance of worthy activity by allowing its agenda to be dominated by the pro-abortion voices in society.
The objections can be heard already: It's not pro-abortion, it's pro-choice.
This is true to an extent. But the pro-choice argument (and movement) often crosses the line into the pro-abortion camp.
This is the undeniable and inescapable identity of Planned Parenthood.
John O'Neill is an Allen Park free-lance writer.
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Planned Parenthood must do more than remove Sanger's name - Dearborn Press and Guide