Actress Kate Walsh Criticized for Promoting Abortion, Slamming Abstinence Ed

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Mar 28, 2008   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Actress Kate Walsh Criticized for Promoting Abortion, Slamming Abstinence Ed Email this article
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
March 28
, 2008

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Actress Kate Walsh is coming under criticism from pro-life advocates for promoting abortion and slamming abstinence education. Walsh plays a physician on ABC’s "Grey’s Anatomy" and "Private Practice" programs but pro-life groups say she shouldn’t be considered an expert when it comes to abortion and sexuality.

Walsh, a member of Planned Parenthood’s Board of Advisors, hosted a Congressional forum this week that the abortion business promoted.

During the panel, Walsh advocated cutting out all government funding for abstinence education, but Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council tells LifeNews.com she’s mistaken if she thinks it will reduce teen pregnancy or abortion.

"Contrary to what Walsh and her liberal friends believe, doing away with abstinence education won’t lower teen pregnancy rates," Perkins said in an email about the event. "Instead it would squelch one of the most effective methods of reducing teen sexual risk."

He pointed to statistics from Adolescent and Family Health showing that 67 percent of the reduction in teen pregnancies is a result of abstinence education.

Perkins also cried foul over a potential breach of Congressional lobbying rules.

"As a recipient of nearly $300 million a year in taxpayer funds, more than a few eyebrows were raised when the organization tried to lure in a big crowd by offering a free lunch," he explained.

"Under the new ethics rules, it’s unlawful for nonprofit groups to provide meals to congressional members or staff. How is it, then, that Planned Parenthood is able to violate government rules?" he asked.

Meanwhile, On Friday’s CBS "Early Show," co-host Julie Chen teased her upcoming interview with Walsh by touting the event.

Media Research Center analyst Kyle Drennen pointed LifeNews.com to the interview.

"She is one of the hottest actresses in Hollywood today … but she’s also passionate about sex education for American teens, and she took her campaign to Capitol Hill. We’re going to ask her why this issue is so important," Chen says.

Drennan points out that Chen offered no counterpoint to Walsh’s slamming abstinence:

"Abstinence is one — abstinence is one aspect of sex education, but it is not the complete aspect. And to expect, I think, everybody to remain abstinent is just — it’s like asking them not to grow. It’s like we don’t ask people to not try out for sports,’ Walsh claims.

Chen’s response? "Yeah, I hear you."

Drennan responds, "Of course, there was no advocate for abstinence-only education asked to give their opinion in the segment."

He called the segment, "another example of the media’s denigration of abstinence education."