Ok, I found this ad on myspace of all places... and I figured I'd click on the link because it seemed interesting and a little like it should be investigated.
Secret Safe is an organization in Philly (where I'm from) that apparently takes newborns anonymously. Read for yourself. It seems like a place that just takes newborns and deals with anything like that, post-birth. But they do have one section where it says "If you're pregnant, there are several options for you. Feeling nervous or scared or not knowing where to turn is natural - this is a big step in a lot of people's lives - but there are people and programs out there who want to help you through it." which sounds nice, right? But then the next bullet point kinda ran a red flag for me. It reads "You can make decisions before having a baby about who will care for it. That might mean relatives, adoptive parents, the father and/or you." This seems to assume that a woman who is pregnant is going to automatically continue with her pregnancy and not choose to get an abortion.
I don't know and I don't want to slander what could be a legitimate organization, but I don't know. Does anyone know more about Secret Safe and Safe Haven? I'm going to do my own research but I want to throw it out there first.
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It looks like it's Pennsylvania's website that gives information about the Save Haven law. The Safe Haven law gives women the opportunity the chance to drop their babies off at a hospital, police station, or fire station, no questions asked. It doesn't seem like Secret Safe is an actual place. I think that's just the name PA gives to the website.
The sentence you quoted does sound suspect, though. If they're going to mention all of those other options, why not mention that you don't have to have the baby at all?
"No one will ask questions. No one will judge you. If it’s a secret, it will stay a secret." Sounds good to me.
Most young women who hide their pregnancies do so for religious reasons- they are afraid of telling their families because they have "sinned" and they won't get an abortion because they see it as an even bigger sin. So they hide their pregnancies, but when the child is born that coping mechanisim suddenly doesn't work anymore, so they panic and abandon the child somewhere. This is more common than you might think. I suspect that many of these women would be "scared off" by a site that suggested they get an abortion. Keep in mind that some women literally see abortion as murder- if someone said to you, "We can help you kill your baby- but if you decide not to, give it to us and we'll take care of it for you"- how likely would you be to hand your child over to them? There are plenty of Internet resources for women seeking to terminate a pregnancy. This site is aimed at young women who have, or are planning to, deliver their child alive, and need a safe solution for themselves and their baby. What's wrong with that?
You seem to be confused about what statement I'm talking about. I was referring to "You can make decisions before having a baby about who will care for it. That might mean relatives, adoptive parents, the father and/or you." You can make the decision to have an abortion too. If they're going to give all of those other options, why not mention abortion? Mentioning abortion isn't suggesting that a woman should get an abortion, no more than mentioning leaving a newborn at the hospital is a suggestion to do that. I believe that women should be informed of all their options, including abortion. And by the rest of your comment, I think you're more concerned about any pregnant woman learning that abortion is a safe and legal option than anything else.
I'm a bit suspicious of it as you are - but also not sure that it isn't legitimate and normal and just badly done. It has the feeling of a CPC-type website, the kind that once you do a bit of snooping is revealed to be funded by a church, and I do think it's odd that there's no mention of real other options, or at least a link to another website that will give you information on ALL the options available for you.
The design of the website seems a little off - firstly because it looks kinda amateury to me, and also because of the "hush little baby" italics, and the picture of a baby's face below and the footprint at top right, and all the "we can help you". Weirdy.
Having said that it is linked from some PA state website, so.... I don't know!
[That sound read top-left not top-right.]
Aha, further research reveals: http://www.secretsafeplacetn.org looks like an exact Tennessee equivalent of this site (some of the FAQs and answers are identical), and the links section includes a link to Tennessee Crisis Pregnancy Centers. Ohh, they always give themselves away if you look hard enough!
I think the makers of the Tennessee website might have seen the Pennsylvania site and copied it to make it look like a state sponsored website. The Pennsylvania site has the governor's name on it, which I doubt would be legal if it wasn't a state sponsored site. The Tennessee website doesn't mention the governor of the state.
It looks very similar to the Safe Haven law we have in Florida, that within three days of birth a baby can be dropped off at a fire station, police station, hospital, etc no questions asked.
Some women are thoroughly opposed to abortion, or can't afford one, so they decide to go a different route.
Yes, this site doesn't say "You can have an abortion", but that's also not the point of the site. The point is that you can drop off your baby, never see them again, and you won't get in trouble.
But it mentions that the woman has the option of raising the baby herself or letting another member of the family raise the baby. That doesn't have anything to do with Safe Haven laws either.
I do think it's odd that there's no mention of real other options, or at least a link to another website that will give you information on ALL the options available for you.
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I believe that women should be informed of all their options, including abortion. And by the rest of your comment, I think you're more concerned about any pregnant woman learning that abortion is a safe and legal option than anything else.
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