Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, December 9, 1993 TAG: 9312090223
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-20 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CAROLYN CLICK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
After the preliminary greetings, the president of Planned Parenthood smiles warmly and waits for the inevitable: Why is she registered at a Roanoke hotel under a pseudonym?
There are no pickets outside her door; in fact, the hotel is announcing Wednesday's annual luncheon of Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge on its marquee with a cheerful "Welcome Planned Parenthood." So why the secrecy?
Everyone in the room knows the answer, knows that it is the abortion debate and its occasional violence that have required high-ranking members of the organization to exercise more caution than usual.
Maraldo, who came to the organization after serving as chief executive officer of the National League for Nursing, thought the clock-and-dagger routine was a bit much. But she acknowledged, "There have been death threats in letters," and the occasional frightening protester.
Ironically, the energetic Maraldo has made it a top priority to move the organization away from the abortion issue that captivated and polarized many Americans in the 1980s and propelled her predecessor, Faye Wattleton, to national prominence.
Maraldo says it is time to develop a more comprehensive approach to women's health and reproductive care.
"For a long time, we had to defend women's right to choose," said Maraldo, 46. But she said that when she interviewed for the position of national president, she emphasized her desire to move away from the defensive position Planned Parenthood adopted in its fight with anti-abortion forces.
"I was not in any way interested in backing away from women's rights," she said. "I just did not like the fact that they were putting us on the defensive. They were trying to `fringe' us."
What she wants to emphasize is the overarching aims of the organization, founded by birth-control crusader Margaret Sanger 77 years ago.
"A very small percentage of Americans know us for abortion," said Maraldo, who holds a doctorate in nursing. "Most know us for education and prevention."
Maraldo wants to ensure that Planned Parenthood is a player in the national health-care debate and in the creation of health alliances that President Clinton's plan would dictate.
"I'd like to see us form our own alliance, a preferred provider network," she said.
She is also calling for an expansion of services beyond traditional birth control and family planning.
Traditionally, she says, even if women are pleased with Planned Parenthood services, they leave when they are preparing to have a baby and require obstetrical care. Maraldo would like to see Planned Parenthood affiliates routinely offer prenatal and obstetrical services.
As the baby-boomer generation ages, she believes, there will also be a need for more programs to cope with middle age.
Most importantly, she would like to see Planned Parenthood in every school district in America before her tenure ends, Maraldo says.
An outspoken feminist, Maraldo is wary of recent pronouncements from Clinton and others about the desire to return to the two-parent family.
While that is an admirable goal, Maraldo says, she is worried about what "the Clinton administration is saying to single mothers."
"Let's not make them feel like outcasts."
by CNB