Dozens of Central New Yorkers gathered on the lawn in front of the East Genesee Street offices of Planned Parenthood in Syracuse Tuesday, saying they were spurred into action by undercover videos of the agency's executives apparently talking about the sale of body parts culled from aborted fetuses for medical research.
"When somebody’s looking to find money to buy a Lamborghini, and is looking to sell body parts to do that, it’s a new low,” said one protester at Tuesday's rally.
Others at the rally shared the same sentiment.
"Disposing of human remains with dignity was a symbol of how much dignity we gave to human life, and now we can’t even do that?” said another protester.
Aside from defunding the agency, these protesters want investigations into how the organization provides fetal tissue to researchers. Bioethics professor Elizabeth Rex says there are ethics questions involved.
"Whether they’re being properly processed, and is there consent truly for the women," said Rex. "Do they know what they are agreeing to, and are they being told?”
There were also a few defenders of the agency on hand, like 27-year old Shauna Dahlke.
"Honestly, the videos didn’t bother me that much," said Dahlke. "I've gone to Planned Parenthood, and I think it’s important. I think it's important for women in the community who don’t have any options for safe birth control methods.”
Planned Parenthood says it follows all laws and ethical guidelines in regard to donation of fetal body parts.
