NARAL Condemns Potential Louisiana Abortion Ban

At this moment, legislation for an unconstitutional abortion ban is heading to Governor John Bel Edwards’ desk to be signed. NARAL Pro-Choice America National Communications Director Kaylie Hanson Long issued the following statement:

“For too long, anti-choice legislators across the country have been prioritizing their extreme ideology over the health and well-being of the hardworking women and families they represent. We saw this infatuation with taking away our rights in Iowa and Mississippi earlier this year and now Louisiana is working to replicate similar restrictions aimed at ultimately outlawing legal abortion in this country. We vigorously condemn Louisiana’s attempts to cut off access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion, and urge Governor Edwards not to support this abortion ban. Louisiana is already one of the states where abortion access is most severely restricted, and this bill would be the final step towards cutting women off from care completely. NARAL will continue mobilizing our members in Louisiana to demand that their legislators stop pandering to anti-choice extremists and their fringe base on the backs of Louisiana women.”

This bill 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. It is part of a growing, concerning national trend aimed at undermining or overturning Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court made 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.