Should public tax dollars support state agencies that promote abortion and homosexuality? That is the question that Deborah Burton, a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky, is asking about the Kentucky Commission on Women (KCW).

The KCW, a 33-year-old state agency which operates from the governor’s office, acts as an informational clearinghouse. It also monitors state legislation, and partners with other organizations on projects related to Kentucky women. But Burton and others contend that information provided by KCW promotes abortion and other radical causes through their web page resources and list serve.

"My concern is that the governor's office is funding all their activities and calling it representative of all Kentucky women.... while repressing freedom of speech for all the Kentucky women who do not agree with their points of view," Burton said.

At issue is a KCW e-mail list serve, which Burton says has a decidedly liberal agenda. Among them are statements calling Lexington OB-GYN, Dr. David Hager a religious extremist because of his pro-life views, one promoting anti-war protests, and yet another inaccurately accusing The Family Foundation of disseminating "false information about emergency contraception."

List serve members are allowed to respond to posts and provide additional information or comments — that is, unless they happen to differ from KCW orthodoxy according to Diane Cape, a family-liaison worker in Prestonsburg. According to Cape, KCW’s editorializing on abortion troubles her. Responses addressing abortion are labeled by KCW staff as either anti-choice or pro-choice. "I find it unacceptable that a public list serve is used as a 'pulpit' for one viewpoint and not open to all," Cape said. "I don’t think they are representing all Kentucky women."

Betsy Nowland-Curry, executive director for the KCW for the past two and a half years, said the majority of the 800 to 1000 subscribers to the list serve are pro-choice. "KCW has historically been a pro-choice organization, only because Roe v. Wade is the law," Nowland-Curry said. "We have always said that abortion should be rare, legal and safe." According to Nowland-Curry, KCW’s annual budget is $260,000, which supports her salary and a staff of three others.

Nowland-Curry said KCW intends to serve all Kentucky women with pertinent information, but Shari Levy of Georgetown disagrees. Levy, who works at the University of Kentucky medical school, said a number of her comments and alternative posts were censored. In an e-mail, Nowland-Curry accused her of being "confrontational" and "antagonistic," and suggested she had "a lot of free time at work" and e-mailed Levy’s supervisors.

KCW endorses and opposes legislation through action alerts that have called for women to support research cloning and special rights for homosexuals. Ironically, though, KCW officially opposed fetal homicide legislation, which would protect pregnant women from criminal or negligent actions that result in their unborn child’s death.

In early March, KCW list serve sent out a pro-choice alert, calling for women to oppose a bill that would have created "Choose Life" license plates and designated some of the revenue to pregnancy care centers. A number of pro-life subscribers objected but none were more outraged than the bill’s sponsor — State Senator Jack Westwood (R-Erlanger).

"It is drastically unfair that they use my tax dollars to defeat my bill," said Westwood, who is not aware of any other government-sponsored agencies ranking or promoting legislation. Westwood’s bill ultimately failed.

KCW joined a pro-abortion coalition called One Voice for Choice — a Louisville event staged on April 2 to support abortion rights. Speakers included Sarah Weddington, Roe v. Wade attorney, U.S. Rep. Connie Morella, an outspoken abortion advocate, and Frances Kissling, founder of Catholics for a Free Choice. Coalition partners included the ACLU of Kentucky's Reproductive Freedom Project, the Fairness Campaign, the Kentucky Association of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, and the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice.

Curry maintains the KCW is nonpartisan, but some of the e-mail posts have been partisan according to Ellen Curtin, a professional editor and mother of four from Northern Kentucky. Curtin brought to the KCW’s attention three posts that were explicitly anti-Republican. "I am not a Republican, but I am concerned that the KCW meet its goal of avoiding partisanship," Curtin said. "And this does not appear to be an objective source of bipartisan information."
Saying his organization is in the process of drafting an advisory opinion on KCW, Andy Crocker, attorney for the Executive Branch Ethics Commission, declined to comment on whether the activities of KCW are legal or ethical. Regardless of the legality, Deborah Burton said she is opposed to KCW’s agenda and has a message for Kentucky citizens: "These are your tax dollars...and if what they are promoting does not agree with you, then speak up," Burton said.