Pro-Choice Clergy Hold Press Conference at Capitol on Wednesday

ALBANY, NY (04/28/2009)(readMedia)-- Pro-choice clergy leaders will be at the Capitol on Wednesday to speak with lawmakers about affordable primary health care--including family planning--as job losses rise and many lose health insurance coverage here New York State. Key activists from the 1000-member strong, multi-faith statewide Concerned Clergy for Choice as well as the national Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) will share experiences to support access to affordable reproductive health care.

Keynote speaker The Rev. Steven Baines, director of Interfaith Outreach for RCRC, will speak to clergy and the media about the the increasing demand for family planning services in these difficult economic times.

Two of the clergy coming to this event were original members of the Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion in 1967--three years before abortion was legal here in New York. They have a very interesting story to tell about the challenges families face in making difficult decisions about unwanted pregnancies. And, while the law has changed, those tough decisions have not.

Interviews available with:

• Rabbi Dennis Ross, director, Concerned Clergy for Choice (CCC)
• Keynote Speaker The Rev. Steven Baines, director of Interfaith Outreach for the nationwide Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC)
• Original members of New York's Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion in 1967
  • The Rev. Tom Davis, author of Sacred Work: Planned Parenthood and Its Clergy Alliances, 2005.
  • The Rev. Charles Straut

Clergy are available for interviews in-studio, by telephone and on-site at the Capitol.