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REFERENDUM ON ABORTION ACCESS GETS KICK-OFF RALLY AS ADVOCATES PREP
FOR NOV. BALLOT  
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Danielle J. Brown
January 22, 2024
Maryland Matters
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_ Freedom in Reproduction-Maryland is taking the lead, working with
other abortion rights groups to persuade voters to approve the new
language in an informational campaign called “Vote Yes on
Reproductive Freedom." _

Abortion advocate Erin Bradley, first lady Dawn Moore and Sen. Ariana
B. Kelly attend rally in support of “Right to Reproductive
Freedom” referendum on Jan. 22, 2024, (Photo by Bryan P. Sears).

 

Abortion rights advocates have launched a campaign to inform voters
about what’s on the November ballot: an option to alter the state
constitution to protect access to abortion for all Marylanders.

Maryland first lady Dawn Moore, members of the General Assembly and
pro-abortion advocates gathered at Lawyers Mall in Annapolis Monday to
raise awareness about the upcoming proposed constitutional amendment
posing the question of abortion to voters.

The event coincided with the 51st anniversary of the landmark U.S.
Supreme Court ruling, Roe v. Wade, which affirmed federal protections
on a person’s right to terminate their pregnancy. That ruling
was reversed in 2022,
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individual state legislatures the authority to restrict or protect
access to abortion.

“While states like our neighbor, West Virginia,
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a near total abortion ban and closed their doors on reproductive
rights, Maryland has opened ours,” Moore said. “So Maryland is
doing the right thing today, but we don’t know who our elected
leaders are going to be 20, 30 years from now.”

In the 2023 session, Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed a package of bills
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protected access to abortion services, declaring Maryland a “safe
haven” for those within the state and those who come in from
more-restrictive states seeking abortions.

One of those bills created the “Right to Reproductive Freedom
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constitutional amendment, which says “that every person, as a
central component of an individual’s rights to liberty and equality,
has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including but not
limited to the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent,
continue or end one’s own pregnancy.”

Marylanders will get to decide if the the state constitution should
include that language on Nov. 5, 2024, and a new abortion rights group
called Freedom in Reproduction-Maryland is taking the lead, working
with other abortion rights groups to persuade voters to approve the
new language in an informational campaign called “Vote Yes on
Reproductive Freedom.”

“We have the opportunity to send a strong message nationwide:
Marylanders overwhelmingly demand their bodily autonomy and
reproductive rights,” said Erin Bradley, chair of Freedom in
Reproduction-Maryland.

House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County) voiced her
support for the measure at the press conference. Jones was an early
advocate of the proposed constitutional amendment.

“It does not matter what Texas, West Virginia or any other state
legislature does. They will never dictate what Maryland does,” she
said.

Ren Culbreath, 20-year-old a Baltimore County resident. Photo by Bryan
P. Sears.

Ren Culbreath, a 20-year-old Baltimore County resident who spoke at
the press conference, is hoping to help young Marylanders get involved
in the referendum effort and vote to enshrine abortion access in the
state Constitution.

“It’s really important for us to know what’s going on in our
world…It feels important,” Culbreath said. “It feels necessary
because the youth are going to take over and then be in these
positions of power, and be in these positions to make change.

The Moores are headlining a high-dollar fundraiser for Freedom in
Reproduction-Maryland Wednesday evening at a private home in
Annapolis. Ticket prices run from $5,000 to $25,000.

In 1992, a ballot question enshrining reproductive rights in Maryland
law passed with 62% of the vote. Advocates believe the current
national political environment necessitates protecting abortion rights
in the state constitution. But there is some organized opposition in
Maryland.

A ballot issue committee called Health Not Harm MD is urging voters to
reject the constitutional amendment on the November ballot, saying
that the measure would “outlaw protections for the most vulnerable
and would eliminate basic health and safety regulations that exists to
protect women and children.”

The group also argues that the amendment “threatens to eliminate
parental rights to make important medical decisions for their minor
children.”

Deborah Brocato, president of Health Not Harm MD, previously led a
referendum effort
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2022 to overturn the state’s Abortion Care Access Act. The effort
failed because organizers did not obtain enough signatures
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qualify for the ballot.

According to a campaign finance statement filed with the Maryland
State Board of Elections last week, Health Not Harm MD reported
raising $5,704.99 over the past few months — $5,000 from a donation
from Robert Brocato, a Towson attorney who appears to be Deborah
Brocato’s spouse. The group had $5,337.21 in the bank as of Jan. 10.

2024 LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS 

While the 2023 legislative session created a bundle of successful
abortion-related legislation, urging Marylanders to approve the
constitutional amendment will be a high priority for pro-abortion
lawmakers.

But there are some reproductive-health related bills in the works for
the current session, according to Sen. Ariana B. Kelly (D-Montgomery),
one of the top lawmakers for pro-abortion legislation.

“We are very focused on the referendum. It needs to be
successful,” Kelly said. “But there are some pieces of legislation
that deal with reproductive health and access to care that I think are
going to be important.”

She said that she has a “follow-up” bill to 2023 legislation to
increase access contraceptives on college campuses.

In 2023, the General Assembly passed SB 341 and HB 477, which requires
that public 4-year universities provide reproductive health services
or refer a student to such services. Kelly, along with Del. Stephanie
Smith (D-Baltimore City), are working on legislation that expands that
requirement to public community colleges.

Kelly said she also is working on a “clean up” bill to repeal
certain state statutes to improve access to contraceptives. She said
there may be additional bills that protect funding for reproductive
health clinics, but those bills have not been filed.

_Danielle J. Brown is a new Maryland resident covering health care and
equity for Maryland Matters. Previously, she covered state education
policy for three years at the Florida Phoenix, along with other topics
such as abortion access and LGBTQ+ issues. _

_Maryland Matters is a trusted nonprofit and nonpartisan news site. We
are not the arm of a profit-seeking corporation. Nor do we have a
paywall — we want to keep our work open to as many people as
possible. So we rely on the generosity of individuals and foundations
to fund our work._

* abortion rights
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* reproductive freedom
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* Maryland
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