March of Dimes 'hiding own dark secrets' on baby parts
Whistleblower: It's not just Planned Parenthood in disturbing practices
Published: 10 hours ago
A top fundraiser for the March of Dimes in two Southern states has been ousted after questioning her employer on whether it has ties to Planned Parenthood’s business of supplying aborted babies for scientific research.
The March of Dimes has always said publicly that it has no involvement in the abortion industry and “no relationship” with Planned Parenthood. It remains “neutral” politically on the issue of abortion, it says on its website.
The MOD slogan is “A Fighting Chance for Every Baby.” It raises nearly $200 million annually for research into cures for birth defects and premature births.
Joy Barr, who served three years as community director for the MOD’s Augusta, Georgia, and Aiken-Sumter, South Carolina, offices, personally raised more than $250,000 for the organization.
But she discovered the group, founded in 1938 to support healthy newborns, is hiding dark secrets from the public and its donors.
Barr’s job was to recruit donors of all sizes, including a large Catholic hospital, Trinity Hospital of Augusta, which has a strict rule against donating to any groups with ties to abortion.
After the Center for Medical Research started releasing its undercover videos showing Planned Parenthood executives casually bartering for “reimbursement” for baby body parts harvested during abortions, including intact livers, hearts, brains and even whole babies, Barr began asking questions of her employer.
“I was horrified by what I saw in the videos but not completely shocked,” Barr told WND. “But when Cecile Richards (CEO of Planned Parenthood) made the comment about the importance of research using aborted fetal tissue for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, my next thought was, do we?”
Were there any ties between the wholesome March of Dimes and the ghastly Planned Parenthood?
Watch video clip of Joy Barr describing her quest for information on the true involvement of March of Dimes in the abortion business.
"At first, they were friendly and tried to get me as much information as they could," Barr said of her former employer.
Barr was sent an old letter dated June 17, 2014, from Dr. Edward McCabe, head of medical research for March of Dimes, explaining MOD policy with regard to abortion:
"The March of Dimes does not encourage, fund, or support abortions," the letter says. "Our longstanding position of neutrality on the issue of abortion is reflected throughout the organization's many programs. March of Dimes grantees are prohibited from using March of Dimes funds to conduct abortion research, to pay for abortions, or to give directive advice concerning abortions. Violation of this policy would be grounds for cancellation of a grant."
Barr was then referred to the foundation's "sensitive issues kit" for more information.
In that kit, March of Dimes directs staffers on how to answer sensitive questions from donors about abortion, Planned Parenthood and other issues.
When the Daily Signal came out with a list of 41 organizations that support Planned Parenthood, and it included March of Dimes, the organization posted the following notice on its Facebook page.
Q: Planned Parenthood – you support them and abortions?
A: "March of Dimes does not have a relationship with Planned Parenthood. Additionally, the March of Dimes does not promote or fund abortion services, nor may Foundation funds be used for directive counseling regarding abortion. Violation of this policy would be grounds for immediate cancellation of a grant or cooperative agreement. Since 2007, five local March of Dimes chapters have given local grants to Planned Parenthood exclusively for prenatal education. In these communities, these are the only such services available to improve the health of low-income women and reduce the risks of birth defects, low birthweight, and prematurity in their babies."
But it turns out that's not entirely true.
image:
http://www.wnd.com/files/2015/09/mod-timeline-graphic.jpgmod timeline graphicAs she continued to press for answers, Barr was told March of Dimes does indeed support some research using tissue obtained from elective abortions.
On July 21, Barr received an email from Michelle Kling, director of public relations for MOD, which included an admission Barr found startling.
"Joy, yes, the March of Dimes has supported some research using cells and tissues obtained from induced abortion and probably will continue to support some," Kling told Barr in the email, a copy of which has been obtained by WND.
When WND contacted Kling to ask the same question, Kling conceded that MOD does make grants to researchers who used aborted baby parts as the specimens on which to be experimented.
"March of Dimes does have a small number of research grants in our very large portfolio, one or two every year, but the research grants are not given to Planned Parenthood, they are given to research universities whose investigators are using (aborted) fetal issue, and the material may or may not be obtained from a Planned Parenthood clinic," Kling said. "It could be obtained from a hospital that performs abortions, or the tissue might come from a different organization than Planned Parenthood that performs abortions. We generally have one or two grants per year that involve fetal tissue. There are some people who would prefer that we don't have any."
What confuses many people is the difference between fetal tissue that doesn't come from aborted babies and that which does.
"Fetal tissue can mean the placenta, it can mean the amniotic fluid, it can mean the part of the umbilical cord removed after birth, it can mean the blood inside the placenta used for stem cells, and it can mean organs and tissues from aborted fetuses," Kling told WND.
"But some people think that when you say 'fetal tissue' it's only the first category while others believe it's only aborted material."
The truth is, it includes both.
"So I think Joy was one who believed it was only the other (first) types of (non-abortive) fetal tissue and so she was very surprised that it encompassed the other," Kling said.
Skirting the truth?
MORE
Read more at
http://www.wnd.com/2015/09/march-of-dimes-hiding-own-dark-secrets-on-baby-parts/#tz1bvOq3wdjQJqZq.99
