High Court Affirms Reproductive Freedom Precedent, but Congress Must Strengthen Protections

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Charmaine Riley, [email protected], 202.548.7166

WASHINGTON – Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement after the Supreme Court reaffirmed reproductive rights in June Medical Services v. Russo.

“The Supreme Court reaffirmed today that every individual should have the right to make their own decisions about their health, their families, their lives, and their futures. This is a victory for tireless abortion advocates from Louisiana and around the country and is a rebuke of efforts intended to make abortion impossible to access. It was disappointing to see that not all justices concurred that the Court should follow its own precedent.

“The Louisiana law the Court struck down had no medical benefit and is part of an ongoing, coordinated effort to eliminate access to abortion, particularly for those living on low incomes, people of color, and those in rural communities. Despite this victory, depending on where they live, too many people in America face insurmountable obstacles to obtaining an abortion.  Congress must pass the Women’s Health Protection Act to ensure reproductive freedom is available to all.”

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and a dozen additional national, state, and local organizations filed a “friend of the court” brief in December urging the Supreme Court to strike down Louisiana’s anti-abortion law, Act 620.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.