Missouri bill would ban abortion at nearly every stage of pregnancy in another extreme attempt to criminalize abortion and overturn Roe v. Wade
For Immediate Release: May 17, 2019
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In response to the Missouri state legislature passing an extreme ban on abortion today, with no exceptions for rape or incest, and which would threaten doctors with prison time, NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue issued the following statement:
“Women across America are still reeling in the wake of Alabama’s abortion ban, and today, Missouri just delivered another blow. Anti-choice politicians, with Donald Trump in charge, are pushing a cruel agenda that puts politicians in between women and their doctors, hurts families, embodies the epitome of government overreach, and aims to send this country backwards to the dark ages. Their cruelty is on full display this week but we are watching and fighting back.
“The fight for reproductive freedom is at a tipping point. These extreme bans, which are intended explicitly to undo Roe v. Wade, paint a clear picture for the American people of the future anti-choice politicians want for them. It’s the opposite of the future we’re working to build and it’s certainly not the future the 7 in 10 Americans who support access to safe and legal abortion want to see.”
On Tuesday, May 21, national, state and local organizations will hold a National Day of Action to Stop the Bans, with other events throughout the week. NARAL is mobilizing with other national organizations for reproductive freedom and justice to stand against these radical bans on abortion. More information can be found by visiting www.stopabortionbans.org.
Additional background:
- Last Tuesday, Alabama’s Senate passed a total abortion ban, which will send doctors to prison for up to 99 years and is explicitly designed to overturn Roe v. Wade. And before the bill’s ink was even dry, Republican Governor Kay Ivey signed it into law, saying it is the “best opportunity” for Roe v. Wade to be revisited.
- Days ago, Georgia’s governor Brian Kemp signed into law a bill that makes abortion illegal before many women even know they’re pregnant, could throw doctors in jail, and could lead to women being investigated for a miscarriage.
- This year alone, the governors of Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Ohio signed into law bills that ban abortion before many women know they are pregnant.
- Ohio is now considering legislation that would put politicians between a woman and her doctor in potentially life-threatening situations—and that was after already passing one of the most restrictive bans in the country.
- This legislative session, the Texas legislature considered a bill that would threaten women seeking an abortion with the death penalty. Republican leaders in the legislature actually gave this bill a hearing, legitimizing the draconian and dystopian proposal.
- Just this year alone, nearly 30 bans on abortion have been introduced, passed, or signed into law in statehouses around the country.