Oh, the irony! Of course, the day before I received this latest notice that I had advanced in the recruitment, I was on campus having an info interview with someone who works in one of the graduate schools. I was getting a better sense for the environment, the resources, the vibe, etc. Then, I asked this final question: “I see that that a new president and administration came in a few years ago. Have you noticed any big shifts in leadership and priorities?” Apparently, there was a HUGE controversy on campus a year or two back where the president directed that a change in the uni’s health care coverage: elective abortion would no longer be covered, because it is “incompatible with the Catholic identity.” OMFG. Internally, I was fur-reaking out.

I knew the Catholic history, and before I applied, I had read their mission statement. My values align with the principles of a holistic education, compassion, community, integrity, academic excellence, etc. And despite the Catholic framework, I had read very specific statements claiming that all religions and denominations were accepted: they embrace diversity, inclusion, all faiths, blah, blah, blah. I asked the lady a few more questions, because as part of my own due diligence, nothing had come up on my radar, and I had scrolled back in the uni’s press releases with recent news and social media postings. Turns out, the issue first arose in October 2013, and on their website, coverage was minimal.

I could NOT believe this. WTF. I tried to remain calm: I thanked the lady and then hurried home to research this further. Holy shit. There was huge campus backlash and protests when this decision came out. One professor even resigned over the issue, saying there was no dialog about the policy change, and it doesn’t align with the uni’s pluralist values. The changes were originally scheduled to take effect January 2014, then they got pushed back to January 2015 to take into account changes from Obamacare, regs, and the like.

So fine, many could argue: Duh, the uni is Catholic. Catholicism is anti-birth control, anti-abortion, anti-gay, etc. It’s not that surprising. On the other hand, this is California. Abortion is classified under basic health care. And interestingly, there are a host of other Catholic universities in California who do NOT have this exclusion in their health care coverage. In fact, right now there are ONLY TWO higher ed places that have moved in this direction. Plus, if the administration is going to pull the “align with the Catholic identity” line, then why will the plans continue to offer birth control and sterilization? And will gays be banned from campus? Aren’t they committing “moral sins”? Will the institution only hire and admit staff and students who are Catholic? And who’s definition of Catholic? I have met so many Catholics who are pro-choice, pro-gay, pro-contraception, pro-divorce (well, you know what I mean…). Society is changing, folks. The rules need to evolve to accommodate what we learn.

Anyway, the good news is that the policy has not yet gone into effect. Also, due to the controversy, Jerry Brown’s office is going back and reviewing whether insurance companies in the state can even offer plans with this exclusion, so it’s possible the change will be legally blocked. I’m also comforted by the fact that the general sentiment on campus is opposed to this.

Abortion rights is a huge deal. I feel so strongly that women must have ultimate say over their bodies. The ability (and right) to control this equates to the ability to shape their lives and select their opportunities. And access to birth control is just as critical as access to abortions. Women need to have know about family planning: it’s all tied together, because better health education and access to birth control reduce the number of abortions. Women who can control the size of their families can better manage and support the brood.

If the university accepts all faiths, then it shouldn’t impose its ideals on people who have never claimed to share their belief in this area. Needless to say, I have been reminded again about this ongoing war against women. More than a decade after I worked for the Feminist Majority Foundation, we are still fighting for the same rights. Argh!