Earlier this month, the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey brought considerable attention to the dire situation women’s health is in, yet again.
The League of Women Voters of the Pikes Peak Region (LWVPPR) joined other local groups and citizens at the Bans Off Our Bodies rally on May 14 in Acacia Park. The rally was one of many around the country to demand that women and people capable of pregnancy retain their power to control their own bodies, lives and futures.
At the rally, the local league advocacy chair, Judith Rice-Jones, read the following League of Women Voters of the United States (LWVUS) statement, written in response to the leaked draft.
“Reproductive care is essential health care and a fundamental right that the Supreme Court is preparing to undermine. If this draft opinion holds, and overturns Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, it not only strips women and pregnant people of their personal autonomy but opens the door to erode more fundamental rights.
“As an organization that believes in the power of women to create a more perfect democracy, we will fight to preserve the individual rights of women to make their own reproductive choices.
“The leaked Supreme Court opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is an affront to our values that support access to health care, reproductive rights and individual liberties and privacy. If this draft opinion is finalized as leaked, it will be an unprecedented blow to women and will put the reproductive health of millions in danger.
This opinion is also a direct attack on Black women and all underserved communities who already experience unfair barriers and limited access to adequate health care services.
“All people deserve access to quality health care, including abortion, and the privacy to make reproductive choices. Today, Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey are still the law, and we will stand with our allies to protect women’s access to care. It is critical that we show up in solidarity, and make our voices heard for reproductive choice. Our democracy depends on it.”
The LWVUS filed an amicus brief in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and we await the official published opinion from the court.
More information will be shared as it comes on our local league website, LWVPPR.org.
We have fought long and hard for the right to choose what we do with our own bodies, and we will not stop now. Just as we will not stop fighting for the right to choose who represents us in office.
Never before has it been more important to choose to use your voice and vote, so be sure you are registered to vote. We welcome our neighbors to join us as we stay informed and use our voices to fight for our rights.
League of Women Voters of the Pikes Peak Region