The David and Lucile Packard Foundation: Bankrolling Our "Right" to Kill Unborn Children Worldwide.(Brief Article)

The fourth-largest foundation in the United States, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, continues in 2001 to solidify its position as a foremost backer of the pro-abortion agenda in the United States and around the world.

In 2000, the Packard Foundation lavished $122.7 million of $614 million total grants on projects in the field of "population." This included a $10 million gift to the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) Foundation for its Choice for America campaign. The Packard Foundation's population grants to date in 2001 again support a "who's who" list of pro-abortion organizations, including Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation.

The foundation was started in 1964 by David Packard (1912-1996), co-founder of the Hewlett-Packard Company, and Lucile Salter Packard (1914-1987). Among the foundation's beliefs are that "Together, universities, national institutions, community groups, youth agencies, family planning centers, and hospitals constitute a great American tradition that complements government efforts to focus on society's needs."

In its guidelines for grant applicants in the area of "reproductive rights," the Packard Foundation tells applicants that "reproductive rights are a fundamental human right." Therefore, the foundation "supports organizations that increase access to reproductive health information and services including abortion, affect public dialogue, and inform public policy."

It continues, "To expand the power of individuals to make their own reproductive choices, many public and private policies must change." The foundation also adds on its web page that with regard to making abortion and family planning more accessible, "Reaching young adults is a priority."

Apparently disturbed that the rest of the world does not have the same radical abortion laws and abortion access as the United States, the Packard Foundation recently established a program to train "population and reproductive health leaders" within eight focus countries: Ethiopia, India, Mexico, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Sudan. The Packard Foundation gave $3 million over five years to the group, Partners in Population and Development, to implement this strategy. The foundation hopes ...