2012 Democratic National Convention: Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Maria Ciano

CHARLOTTE, Sept. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a transcript of a speech, as prepared for delivery, by Maria Ciano at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, September 4, 2012:

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My name is Maria Ciano. I grew up in a conservative Republican family in Aurora, Colorado. Many of my relatives can't believe I'm doing this. I guess I can't either. I still believe in small government, but I no longer believe in the Republican Party.

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan want the government to have a say in my family planning. They want employers to decide what kind of birth control coverage I have—or if I can have it at all. They want to put insurance companies in charge of my health care. They want to deny me the power to make the most personal decisions about my life. That's not small government. That's not the America I love.

The America I love respects the dignity of women. The America I love is a place where, when we say "freedom," we mean my freedom to make decisions about my life, not someone else's freedom to make them for me. And that's the America President Obama is fighting for.

When women's rights are threatened, President Obama doesn't hide. He stands up—not just for women, but with women, amplifying our voices and defending our rights.

Give him four more years, and our right to make our own most personal decisions will be safe for another generation. Give him four more years, and he will protect the freedoms and the America we all love.

SOURCE 2012 Democratic National Convention Committee