The ability to make our own decisions about abortion is essential to living a life of freedom, autonomy, and dignity. But extremist judges and politicians in power are taking away our rights and freedoms. The Supreme Court’s wrong decision to overturn Roe v. Wade marked the end of a guaranteed right to abortion for people across the country. Access to abortion care is now wholly illegal or severely restricted in many states across the South and Midwest. Extremist politicians want to impose a national ban to make abortion care illegal in every state. And they won’t stop there either; some have already attacked birth control and are making plans for more attacks.
Making abortion illegal harms all of our communities but is especially harmful to people who already face unequal access to health care, especially people of color. It also threatens women’s economic security and pushes families into poverty.
Lawmakers must prioritize policies that protect the ability of every person to have the freedom they need to make personal decisions about their reproductive health care without interference from extremist politicians who want to control us. The decision to have an abortion or to use contraception should be in the hands of individuals, not the government. It is the job of our lawmakers to make sure our laws safeguard our ability to decide if, when, and how to start a family, including protecting access to affordable and available abortion care and contraception.
National Women's Law Center Action Fund