An important lesson to take from the opponents of embryonic stem cell research is that, though they are very much in the minority ( only 30% of the american population), they wield enormous power. Why is that?
Well, we all know the answer lies with the well-organized religious right.
In dealing with legislators as Don Reed says in today's message at Stem Cell Battles: "The opposition, is enthusiastic, and they flood their friends with support, and barrage their opponents."
The 70% of americans who support embryonic stem cell research will have to do the same and become more vocal.
That includes the bio-medical industry as well as the grassroots advocates: "we need to voice our support for ESCR friends in the House and the Senate, and barrage our opponents in both Houses!!"
This sounds pretty straight forward. And believe me I've done my share of face to face meetings with legislators as documented in a front page article in the Orlando Sentinel last week, and even picked up by the World News Network.
Just two weeks ago our group of parents with spinal cord injured children were in Washington DC, meeting with several opposing legislators, as well as dropping off some thank you notes with other legislators.
We know that after the November elections and due in large part to the Michael J. Fox commercials which were attacked by Rush Limbaugh, the Stem Cell Research Issue has very much become a mainstream issue.
Folks from the Parkinsons Action Network and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation have also already lobbied their legislators in Washington DC in recent weeks, to support the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, and embryonic stem cell research in general. Kudos go out to these terrific grassroots organizations.
Yet it has come to our attention that there are still people in cure advocacy organizations who choose to avoid the embryonic stem cell research issue.
One such cure organization's marching orders last year included the specific instruction NOT to advocate for embryonic stem cell research in face to face meetings with their legislators. From all indications plans are no different this year......as their evasive comment: "everyone will advocate as they see fit" reflects.
Not only did they undermine the ESCR movement by not actively advocating for ESCR in face to face meetings with their legislators, they even employed word choice which further undermined the ESCR movement.
By using the words "non-controversial" as a selling point of the other bill they were pushing, they were putting embryonic stem cell research in a bad light.
Now you might think that maybe these people are themselves part of the religious right and therefor have every right to avoid advocacy for ESCR, but ironically these people proclaim to be Pro-ESCR!
Yet when you visit their website, there is not one single word about how they feel about embryonic stem cell research either. And again this year their keynote speaker is an adult stem cell researcher who is trying to cure spinal cord injury with umbilical cord blood stem cells!!
Here is what two other neurologists say about Umbilical cord blood stem cells:
Stice: Stice pointed out that while cord-blood stem cells are probably a better fit for sickle-cell disease, embryonic cells have appeared to be more effective in treating spinal-cord injuries or growing cardiac-muscle cells.
Kerr: And adult stem cells aren't an option. He tried to generate spinal motor neurons from adult stem cells and cells isolated from umbilical cord blood, but decided that programming a blank slate—hESCs—is far more efficient than deprogramming specialized cells and redirecting them toward a different fate. He put everything on hold, pending the outcome of the November midterm elections.
What makes this group's actions even more troublesome is that the organization in question represents the universal symbol of disability: the wheelchair user.
And with a name like Unite to fight Paralysis you'd think they would really unite behind the ESCR issue, and be vocal about it just like Christopher Reeve himself did.
I can just hear the legislators in their speeches on the House or Senate floor saying: "Well, I just had a group of wheelchair users wheel through my office, and they NEVER even brought up the Stem Cell Research issue,......so I don't think they feel it's that important,.......let's just stick with the federal funding of umbilical cord blood stem cells, and the "non-destructive" stem cell research that the federal government already funds".
It makes me wonder how the Parkinsons Action Network and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation feel about doing the brunt of the embryonic stem cell research advocacy, while their work is later undermined by a group of wheelchair users whose impact as the universal symbol of disability is immense.
Here is hoping this Paralysis Cure organization will finally choose to actively advocate for Embryonic Stem Cell Research in this year's face to face meetings with their House and Senate members during their visit to Washington DC.
As members of the Pro-ESCR movement, we ought to hold one another accountable, expecially if we proclaim to be Pro-ESCR as a Cure Advocacy organization. I just know the so-called "Pro-Life" groups hold each other accountable, and that is a huge part of their strength and success even though they only represent 30% of the american population, while the Pro-ESCR groups actually represent 70% of the population.