`HOSTILE' A TERM WRONGLY APPLIED

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, February 11, 1992                   TAG: 9202110380
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
`HOSTILE' A TERM WRONGLY APPLIED
ON JAN. 31, you reported that anti-abortion legislation sending physicians to prison if they perform an abortion on a minor without a parent's knowledge was "killed" by a "hostile Senate committee." Webster's defines "hostile" as "of or relating to an enemy, marked by especially overt antagonism."
Do you consider anyone who opposes abortion-notification legislation to be hostile? Do you believe that the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the National Medical Association, the National Academy of Science, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Psychiatric Association, and the National Association of Social Workers to be hostile as well?
All of these prominent health organizations oppose such mandatory notification laws. None of these organizations are "pro-choice." They are concerned for the welfare and well-being of young people and families.
They are not hostile. Nor are the senators who opposed the abortion notification measure. They are concerned about passing laws that could endanger the lives of Virginia's young people. ANNIKA L. TAYLOR SALEM

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB