Anonymous
"He told me that he believed abortion to be wrong. He refused to provide me with a reference."
Ten percent of Cannon Beach’s population is originally from Mexico. To many, they are invisible. However, Cannon Beach could not function without its Mexican workers. They will work difficult jobs for minimum wage. Cannon Beach’s Mexican residents came to the United States seeking a better life for their families and the majority are here to stay. I teach English to Spanish speakers here. To most of my students, I am a bridge to help them understand the very different culture of Cannon Beach. I provide help in working out telephone bills, understanding work vocabulary, filling out forms and most importantly, linking the Mexican community to necessary healthcare and social services.
Last year, a student approached me to help him find an abortion provider for his wife. They already have one child and recognized that more children will make it very difficult for them. I looked in the phone book and found only Portland references. Then, I called a local nonprofit social service agency, Community Action. The man who answered the phone asked me why my student wished to end the pregnancy. He told me that he believed abortion to be wrong. He refused to provide me with a reference. I told him that my student wished to end the pregnancy and it was not his business to ask why. I told him that abortion is currently legal and my student, therefore, has every right to access to one without harassment. Finally, he looked in the phone book and gave me the reference of Birthright and the Pregnancy Resource Center in Astoria. I told him that both are run by anti-choice organizations and that they are inappropriately biased references. I then hung up. Seething.
Finally, I started calling clinics in Portland. I called several who advertised Spanish-speaking staff only to be informed that they no longer employed those staff. I finally found the Downtown Women’s Center. It took me many phone calls over three days to provide this reference for my student.
My student and his wife took time off work the next week for the procedure. Unfortunately, they have doctored papers and are unable to become legal despite being here, working and paying taxes for 10 years. As a result, my student had to pay out of pocket without the benefits of the Oregon Health Plan. As they make only minimum wage, this set them back quite a bit. In the end, this family was able to exercise their right to family planning. However, without my help, they may not have been able to make this choice.
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