URGE DEMANDS IMMEDIATE GOVERNMENT RESPONSE IN THE WAKE OF SCOTUS DECISIONS ON WHOLE WOMEN’S HEALTH V. JACKSON & UNITED STATES V. TEXAS

Today, the Supreme Court issued decisions in Whole Women’s Health v. Jackson and the United States v. Texas – lawsuits brought by abortion providers and the Department of Justice, respectively, challenging Texas’ unconstitutional Senate Bill 8, or S.B. 8. While the Supreme Court allowed abortion providers to move forward in their fight against the abortion ban on narrow grounds, the law remains in place and access to abortion continues to be limited in Texas. This Supreme Court, stacked with conservative justices appointed with the singular goal of ending abortion, continues to sanction the bounty-hunting scheme that attacks abortion access, undermines bodily autonomy, and creates fear in Texans and across the country. 

S.B. 8 took effect 100 days ago, annihilating abortion access in Texas. That means that for 100 days, Texans have struggled to obtain the health care they need. For 100 days, community members, providers, abortion and practical support funds, and nonprofit organizations have worked to educate about the effects of this unconstitutional denial of rights and mitigate the consequences of this law. And for 100 days, despite the uncertainty, supporters across the state and country have banded together to support pregnant people in Texas. With its actions today, the Supreme Court has given a green light to the copycat S.B. 8 bills popping up around the country, such as those in other URGE states, including Ohio and Alabama. 

Statement from Desireé Luckey, Director of Policy at URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity:

“Abortion bans are racist, classist tools used to control the bodies and the lives of individuals; primarily the most marginalized young people in Texas—those who are Black, Indigenous, Latinx, low-income, queer, transgender, and im/migrants. “Pregnant people deserve access to abortion care without restrictions that compromise their dignity or strain their pockets. Texas continues to enact harm against its residents by forcing people to travel out of state for their healthcare needs and creating a culture of fear around abortion care.

“As the legal battle continues, we hope that the District Court will quickly provide the necessary relief to prevent more damage. We call upon the Biden-Harris Administration to continue its whole government response to these attacks on abortion access, Congress to pass proactive legislation to protect the constitutional right to abortion, and for state legislators to act quickly to protect abortion care in their upcoming or current legislative sessions. At URGE, we will continue our work to build young people’s power to fight bans like S.B. 8, protect our rights, and expand abortion access. We will not allow extremists to control our bodies or our futures.”