Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

Forty-five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that the constitutional right to privacy extends to a woman’s right to make her own personal medical decisions.

Today, Donald Trump and Mike Pence are determined to repeal Roe and turn back the clock on abortion, putting women’s lives at risk.

Abortion care is health care, and women’s health care is a human right. When Donald Trump took office, we took to the streets to march and raise our voices in defense of our rights. One year later, our cause is just as great, and our voices just as strong.

The threat to Roe may be one Supreme Court vacancy away. But in the states, extremist laws that mandate harmful, medically-unnecessary restrictions on abortion are already proliferating. And extremist anti-choice Republicans in Congress are pushing laws that will restrict access to safe and legal abortion and threaten abortion providers with jail.

We must tell Donald Trump and the Republican Congress to respect the law of the land. Women need Roe, and today, Roe needs us.

Contact

Emily Imhoff, press@now.org, 951-547-1241