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Dear Friend,
Our lives are on the line and reproductive justice cannot wait. Republicans have failed us once again by voting against the much-needed Women’s Health Protection Act – and their message is more clear than it's ever been: Our livelihoods and rights to bodily autonomy simply do not matter to them.
Here’s what happened: Last week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that he would bring the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) up for a vote. This is a bill that would protect the right to abortion throughout the United States and guard against the medically unnecessary abortion restrictions being pushed forward by state politicians. Today that vote to protect women failed.
Now it’s time to double down: We’re reaching out to Senators, sharing your signatures, your stories, and contributions, and pushing Congress to take immediate action. We’re going to rallies, shouting as loud as we can, meeting with our lawmakers, and collaborating with organizations nationally to protect access to abortion care for all. And we won’t stop until we have the rights we deserve!
We can (we must) win. The House-passed WHPA in its entirety. It highlighted our need for affordable and accessible reproductive health care for young women and mothers, Black women, trans people, immigrant women, and other communities of color that are marginalized and whose reproductive health care needs are too often ignored.
This is critical to mothers: Six in ten women who have abortions are already mothers, with studies showing many are choosing not to have another child to protect the well-being of their existing family; and moms want abortion care to be accessible to all who need it. [1]
Although we are grateful for our Congressional champions and swift action of many leaders to protect our rights in this moment, we need every lawmakers to fully show up for people and communities fighting for racial, economic, and reproductive justice, to commit to protecting our rights, and to acknowledge that abortion-specific restrictions are a tool of gender oppression, as they target health care services that are used primarily by women.
Let's be clear: As of now, abortion is still legal with various levels of access in every state. If the SCOTUS leak reflects the final decision overturning Roe, we will see an increase in maternal morbidity rates across the board. People will not stop having abortions, but more people will be harmed from unsafe abortions. Also, because racial disparities and social, health, environmental, and economic determinants already exists, the highest amount of people that will suffer annually from unsafe abortions will be Black women and women of color.
Read our statements from Executive Director and CEO of MomsRising, Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner and Campaign Director of Reproductive Justice, Diarra Aida Diouf:
“Today’s U.S. Senate vote on the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) is a bitter disappointment and a painful reminder of how badly out of touch Senate Republicans are with their constituents and their country.
“With the U.S. Supreme Court poised to strip away our right to privacy and with it, women’s autonomy and ability to be free and equal members of society, America’s moms, women and families are counting on Congress to protect our fundamental right to choose if, when, and how many children to have. The House of Representatives passed WHPA in its entirety but today Republicans defeated even a modified version of it in the U.S. Senate. This is tyranny of the minority, a failure of democracy, and a denial of our essential rights and freedoms. It puts the health, lives, and economic security of America’s moms and women at grave risk.
“The majority of people who seek abortion care are moms, and our lives will change in fundamental, truly appalling ways if lawmakers are allowed to make our most personal health decisions. Low-income women, women of color, young and immigrant women, and those who are LGBTQ+ will surely suffer the most. At some point, if we have a hostile Congress and President, every woman in America will lose the fundamental right to abortion. That would be devastating.” -Statement of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO, MomsRising
“Abortion is legal today but unless Congress acts, that seems likely to change. The Supreme Court could imperil not just our fundamental right to abortion care but also our right to access birth control. The same people who support abortion bans have long opposed free birth control, improved maternal health care, paid family/medical leave, affordable childcare, and more. And we fear that the Supreme Court will reverse other fundamental rights, including marriage equality, LGBTQ rights, and more.”
“It is more important than ever that Congress protect our fundamental rights and freedoms.”
-Statement of Diarra Aida Diouf, Campaign Director, Maternal Justice, Reproductive Justice and Youth Justice, MomsRising
Thank you for taking action! After you’ve contributed, we invite you to join our partners in reproductive rights organizations in dozens of cities across the country this Saturday, May 14th to say: #BansOffOurBodies! Find out more about what’s happening in your community here: https://action.momsrising.org/go/71319?t=11&akid=17838%2E2840598%2EqppZLw
In Solidarity,
- Diarra, Monifa, Tina, Kristin and the whole MomsRising.org/MamásConPoder Team
P.S. Given the recent security concerns about pro-choice mobilization and rallying, we encourage you to take every precaution to ensure the safety of you and your loved ones. We advise you to consider this as you think about bringing children: Before attending, be sure to curate a security and exit plan, including safety routes, in the case of an emergency. Be sure to stay hydrated and alert-- bring water, snacks, a charged cell-phone, and wear comfortable closed-toe shoes. *Here’s the link again to find a rally near you: https://action.momsrising.org/go/71319?t=13&akid=17838%2E2840598%2EqppZLw
P.P.S. Click here to share your story with us! We will gather our voices and pressure federal and state elected leaders to act now!
P.P.S.S. To make a direct donation to the National Network of Abortion Funds, which works to remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access for millions across the country, click here. Use the M+A Hotline if you or someone you love needs a confidential, private and secure phone and text hotline for self-managed miscarriage or abortion. If you or someone you love have questions about self-managed abortion and the law, the Repro Legal Helpline is a free, confidential source for legal advice and information on self-managed abortion. Visit ReproLegalHelpline.org or call 844-868-2812.
Citations:
[1] ‘Who Gets Abortions In America?’, New York Times, Dec. 2021.
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