For Immediate Release: March 6, 2018
Contact: [email protected]
Today, the Mississippi Senate passed H.B. 1510, an abortion ban that, if signed by Governor Phil Bryant, would show the extent to which anti-choice politicians will go to ban abortion in the state. As the bill is sent to the governor’s desk for signing, NARAL Pro-Choice America National Communications Director Kaylie Hanson Long issued the following statement:
“There is no question that H.B. 1510 is a strategic move by the anti-choice movement to make Mississippi the first state where legal abortion is no longer accessible. We know what happens when abortion is illegal or inaccessible: women are forced to travel out of state to get essential care, women who can’t afford to take time off of work or travel outside the state are left with nowhere to turn, and we know that when abortion is banned, the number of abortions doesn’t go down, the number of deaths and injuries to women go up.
“Women and families in Mississippi know that their ability to get ahead and have economic stability depends on their ability to plan their own families and control their own futures. NARAL members will not stand by as our basic freedoms are attacked, and we urge Governor Bryant to reject this bill.”
Background:
H.B. 1510 is part of a growing national trend that is immensely concerning. It is similar to unconstitutional abortion bans introduced in the U.S. Congress last year, including a bill to ban abortion at six weeks, before many women even know they are pregnant.
The Supreme Court made very clear in Roe v. Wade that bans before viability violate a woman’s right to privacy. It established a constitutional right to an abortion.
Similar unconstitutional abortion bans have been struck down by the courts. In North Dakota, the courts ruled that a similar abortion ban was unconstitutional, citing U.S. Supreme Court precedent. Courts also ruled an Arkansas law to be unconstitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear either case when defendants asked the court for additional review.
NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all Americans. NARAL works to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”
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