I marched over to the U.S. Supreme Court after the disastrous opinion overturning Roe v Wade was released today. I am outraged over the rollback of rights and freedoms that will take away the right to an abortion and the ability of women and their families to make their own decisions about their lives. The court opinion is downright dangerous, and will cause disproportionate harm to vulnerable people, especially young girls and women without the means to access birth control or care for a child. Women, families and their doctors – not politicians – should determine the timing of childbirth, make their own personal reproductive health decisions and choose their pathways in life.
Neighbors across Florida are rightfully worried about what today’s decision means for them – Governor DeSantis and Republican legislators already have passed a costly and cruel restrictive abortion ban in the state that is illegal under the right to privacy under our state constitution. Repealing Roe v Wade affects more than just abortion care – it impacts the work and funding of health providers that people in communities across the country depend on. We need to ensure that all people have access to the quality care they need, including birth control, abortion care, prenatal care and parenting support. Republican politicians is Florida are pressing for greater restrictions immediately. Other states now have completely outlawed abortion and have moved to criminalize the actions of women and doctors.
That’s why I cosponsored the House-passed Women’s Health Protection Act, which would protect a person’s ability to determine whether to continue or end a pregnancy up to the time of fetal viability, and to protect a health care provider’s ability to provide abortion services. Surely the senators who voted for justices who proclaimed their devotion to established precedent should help pass the bill into law.
