The Quickie: "We Have the Will—and Crucially the Votes—to Get Abortion Rights Back in the Consitution"
For Immediate Release: June 21, 2023
Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.
In today’s Quickie: PPFA president reflects on Dobbs and the path forward, VP Harris joins abortion rights roundtable, Rikelman confirmed to U.S. Court of Appeals, abortion rights advocate wins VA senate primary, and antis are back at it again.
**PRESS CALL TODAY @ 3:30 PM ET: REPRO EXPERTS REFLECT ON ABORTION ACCESS 1 YEAR POST-DOBBS. RSVP HERE.**
“WE HAVE THE WILL—AND CRUCIALLY THE VOTES—TO GET ABORTION RIGHTS BACK IN THE CONSTITUTION”: Yesterday, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund Alexis McGill Johnson penned an op-ed for ELLE, reflecting on the last year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and the path moving forward. As Alexis notes, now one in three women across the country—plus trans and nonbinary people—cannot get abortion care in their state, forcing them to spend thousands to make the difficult journey to seek care out of state or be forced to carry their pregnancy to term, often despite great medical risks.
Despite the devastation the Dobbs decision has created, Alexis writes,
“We have the power. You are the power. The numbers are on our side. What we do now is fight like hell. Not to regain or restore the rights the court has taken. We rework, reimagine, and rededicate ourselves to building a just world that includes nationwide abortion access for all… We’ve got the will and the might to get abortion rights back in the U.S. Constitution. And I don’t say that lightly. Our job right now is to go beyond Roe and guarantee anyone who needs abortion care can get it, no matter where they live or who they are—something that Roe never did… We are calling for nothing short of transformation to end the seemingly endless battles on the state level. We need 38 states to ratify a new constitutional amendment for reproductive rights. How fast that happens depends on you.”
Read the full op-ed at ELLE.
VP HARRIS JOINS ROUNDTABLE ON ABORTION RIGHTS IN A POST-ROE WORLD: Last night, Vice President Kamala Harris lead a roundtable on MSNBC’s The ReidOut, discussing the explosion of abortion bans since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the devastating health consequences of bans, and the administration’s commitment to protecting abortion access.
Check out the roundtable here.
PPAF CELEBRATES CONFIRMATION OF JULIE RIKELMAN TO COURT OF APPEALS: Yesterday, Julie Rikelman was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to a lifetime appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Rikelman has extensive litigation experience including with major reproductive rights cases, having argued in June Medical Services v. Russo and Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization at the U.S. Supreme Court. Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, celebrated her confirmation:
“I am thrilled to see a qualified and brilliant legal mind like Julie Rikelman join the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. As a skilled litigator and long-time advocate for abortion rights, Julie has worked tirelessly to fight against the onslaught of attacks on our reproductive freedom — including arguing at the Supreme Court. The federal courts play an essential role in advancing equality and protecting and rebuilding our fundamental rights. I’m excited for Judge Rikelman to continue her demonstrated commitment to equality under the law and build her legacy as a federal judge.”
Read more at Vox.
ABORTION RIGHTS ADVOCATE AIRD DEFEATS ANTI-ABORTION INCUMBENT IN VA PRIMARY: Last night, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia-endorsed candidate Lashrecse Aird prevailed in Virginia’s 13th Senate District primary over anti-abortion incumbent Joe Morrissey. Aird’s win is a critical step to defend abortion rights in Virginia’s state senate, which currently has only a narrow abortion rights majority.
Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia (PPAV) worked tirelessly with supporters across the commonwealth to ensure voters knew of Joe Morrissey’s anti-abortion record during this primary through phone banking, door-to-door canvassing, a robust direct mail program and digital ads targeting approximately 14,000 likely Democratic primary voters.
“Lashrecse Aird made this race about protecting abortion rights — something the majority of Americans overwhelmingly agree on,” Jamie Lockhart, PPAV Executive Director, said. “Aird was unapologetically pro-abortion rights and campaigned on stopping Governor Youngkin from enacting an abortion ban in Virginia. The voters of SD-13 were loud and clear: they demand to be represented by an outspoken advocate for reproductive rights. This is a victory for SD-13 residents, for Virginians, and for health care access in our entire southeast region.”
Read more at AP.
*CONTENT WARNING: SEXUAL ASSAULT*
YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS: Anti-abortion activists consistently blow our minds with their medical disinformation and peddling of cruel policies that deny people their fundamental rights. Kristan Hawkins’, president of Students for Life (an anti-abortion group), recent comments on “The Boom Clap Podcast” leave such a gross taste in our mouths that all we can say is: wow.
First reported in Jessica Valenti’s “Abortion, Every Day” substack, Hawkins claims, “sexual assault actually helps prevent a lot of pregnancies itself because of your body’s natural response.”
Needless to say, this claim is unequivocally false and has long been suggested by anti-abortion politicians as a justification for why exceptions for survivors are unnecessary and why total abortion bans are tenable. Hawkins and her colleagues display a remarkable lack of knowledge of human biology, especially for those who fight to restrict others’ access to medically-backed health care. Would you look at that?
