Pro-Life Activist Calls Planned Parenthood's Attempts to Retrain a Sham
Responding to video footage showing clinic managers counseling a pimp, the nation's largest abortion provider announced that it will retrain its staff.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America announced on Tuesday plans to train employees, starting in April, on reporting risks to minors' welfare and tighten disciplinary action against those who fail to follow the policies. The training will be geared to "anyone who has direct patient contact."
PPFA says their efforts to train all of its clinicians is part of their commitment to women's health and to protect the young women. Planned Parenthood shared in a statement that it has "a firm commitment to reporting any potential harm to a minor."
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However, Lila Rose insisted in a statement sent to The Christian Post, "This announcement by Planned Parenthood is nothing more than window dressing to try and patch over a major crisis engulfing all levels of Planned Parenthood – from the front line staffer to the hierarchy of the organization."
Live Action, Rose's youth-led movement "dedicated to building a culture of life and ending abortion," as its website states, recently released undercover video that shows health services providers aiding and abetting the sexual exploitation of minors.
In the videos, two individuals posing as a prostitute and a pimp ask clinic employees questions about documentation, making appointments, and age and guardianship requirements for services for teen prostitutes.
The first video released in January showed New Jersey Manager Amy Woodruff giving the pair advice on how to fill out the forms so as to hide the fact they are sex workers.
"We want to make it as legit as possible," Woodruff said at one point.
The clinic fired Woodruff after the video went public.
Another video, released last week, depicts a Virginia employee advising the actors to utilize the state's judicial bypass process to gain abortion access for underage sex workers.
Planned Parenthood initially responded with the charge that the videos were edited to show criminal actions and depicted isolated incidents.
However, the California-based group then released raw footage of the New Jersey video as well as three more recordings from New York.
A statement from Planned Parenthood of New York City reads, "Unlike other publicized tapes, the hoax patients in New York were not able to get beyond the reception desk for private consultation."
Had they received a private consultation, the group argued, the Live Action actors would have been met by a trained social worker.
However, Rose pointed out the inconsistency of Planned Parenthood's reaction.
"Planned Parenthood's story keeps changing," she asserted. "First they attacked Live Action – while admitting guilt and firing their New Jersey manager. Then they defended their Virginia staff saying they acted 'professionally' and claiming that they 'offer excellent training to our staff.' They even went so far as to say 'there is no training that could prevent this from happening' on national television."
Rose said Planned Parenthood is struggling to explain the videos because it has an "institutional" pattern of cover-ups and hidden truths.
"Live Action's investigation has uncovered a serious, institutional crisis in which Planned Parenthood is willing to aid and abet sex trafficking and exploitation of minors and young women," she charged.
Rose is now working with pro-life groups to lobby against federal funding for the organization's family planning health services. Rose appeared in a webcast with Family Research Council President Tony Perkins and Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser last week to urge support for three legislations proposed by the U.S. House Republicans to eliminate funding to abortion providers.
"We shouldn't have the leading abortion provider in America or any organization that also provides abortions be in the business of operating and doing the important work of Title 10 clinics," stated Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), the author of the Title X bill and a guest on the Wednesday broadcast.
FRC is also pushing for investigations on the states where the videos were taped.
According to the Christian Broadcasting Network's reports, the New Jersey attorney general's office is looking into the claims. Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli also told CBN he found the Richmond video "very disturbing."
