Abortion

As a person who was adopted at birth I am strongly in favor of encouraging women who find themselves with an unwanted pregnancy to seek adoption placement over abortion. Personally I am strongly pro-life and believe that life starts at birth. However, I am fiercely against black markets and absolutely support pro-choice policies in Milwaukee and Wisconsin when it comes to abortion.

Even after the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision, which overturns Roe v. Wade, Title X funding requires state programs, such as the Reproductive Health and Family Planning program, to neutrally advise women on all their options as it relates to pregnancy. Milwaukee Health Department coordinates with RHFP primarily through a set of clinics that they fund such as the Keenan Health Center and South Side Health Center as well as directly contacting MHD directly or 211 indirectly.

I suggest that the Common Council modifies the MHD mandate from one of neutrality on Abortion to a posture of promoting Adoption for mothers who are unable or unwilling to care for their unborn child. This would result in a loss of all Title X funds - which total just over $3M to the State with Milwaukee Health Department not directly receiving any of those funds in their approximately $21M budget from the City of Milwaukee.

Therefore it would seem that the loss of revenue due to not being Title X compliant will not effect the Milwaukee Health Department budget and we have an excellent opportunity to require providers and hotline operators in the City to encourage our citizens to persuade unexpecting mothers' to have their little Milwaukeeans and adopt them to families who want and can provide for them.

The City of Milwaukee does not currently directly fund abortion providers, such as Planned Parenthood, and I encourage the Common Council to solidify that stance with legislation. The City does coordinate with Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers and I seek to stop that as well. In my opinion government funding, direct or indirect, should not be going to abortion providers.

Additionally I propose we require all women, within the City of Milwaukee, who are contemplating an abortion to receive a half hour briefing on the mechanics of adoption. These classes would be fully funded out of the Milwaukee Health Department's budget.