Hi John, it’s Raquel.
Today is the 51st anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that established constitutional protections for abortion.
In 2022, we saw our Supreme Court, led by far-right conservative judges, ignore decades of precedent and overturn Roe, stripping away our reproductive rights.
One of my most powerful lessons as a legislator was a state trip to El Salvador, where a total abortion ban is in place. Our delegation met with women sent to prison simply for having miscarriages or obstetric emergencies. I knew we could never let this happen here.
Right now, we’re seeing a state-by-state attack to reverse reproductive rights. Right here in Arizona, we are awaiting our conservative court’s ruling that considers enforcing abortion laws from the 18th century!
If Republicans are not stopped, we could be seeing an attempt to ban abortion nationally.
Despite our setbacks, I remain hopeful. Just yesterday, I joined thousands of people gathered at the Arizona Women’s March: people were signing petitions, training to be volunteers, and fighting back against extremist abortion restrictions.
‘Looking ahead’ after the August primary for our team will look like this: we will not slow down the campaign after winning. We'll be working tirelessly to pass Arizona’s ballot measure to protect the right to abortion.
Then, once Democrats retake the majority, Congress must act. That’s why I fully support codifying Roe into federal law. I know together, we can get it done.
