Tag Archives: women’s rights

The Associated Press reports: Mexico’s Supreme Court decriminalized abortion nationwide Wednesday, two years after ruling that abortion was not a crime in one northern state. That earlier ruling had set off a grinding process of decriminalizing abortion state by state. Last week, the central state of Aguascalientes became the 12th state to decriminalize the procedure. Judges in states that still …

Via press release from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker: Governor JB Pritzker signed SB1909 into law, also known as the Deceptive Practices of Limited Services Pregnancy Centers Act. This law bars so-called “crisis pregnancy centers” from using misinformation, deceptive practices, or misrepresentation in order to interfere with access to abortion services or emergency contraception. The law allows the Illinois Attorney General …

The Cincinnati Enquirer reports: It’s official: Ohioans will vote on abortion access this November. A proposed amendment to enshrine abortion protections in the state constitution submitted enough valid signatures to make the November ballot, the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office announced Tuesday. That means Ohio will be the only state in the nation voting on reproductive rights this year. The …

Courthouse News reports: A lawsuit seeking to invalidate a nearly two-century-old Wisconsin statute outlawing abortion will proceed, after the presiding judge on Friday denied a motion to dismiss the closely watched legal action. Days after the U.S. Supreme Court upended Roe v. Wade last summer, making abortion law an issue for individual states to decide, Democratic Wisconsin Attorney General Josh …

CNN reports: A federal judge late on Friday cleared the way for North Carolina’s 12-week ban on most abortions to take effect Saturday. The law provides exceptions in the case of rape or incest through 20 weeks of pregnancy or in the event of a “life-limiting anomaly” through 24 weeks. The law also prohibits health care providers who object to …

Reuters reports: U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday will sign an executive order designed to protect and expand access to contraception, after a Supreme Court ruling last year overturning the constitutional right to abortion raised fears that birth control could also face restrictions. Biden senior adviser Jen Klein told reporters that the order will increase ways for women to access …

CNN reports: A controversial six-week abortion ban bill is headed to South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s desk to be signed into law after the measure cleared the state Senate Tuesday. The state Senate approved a House-amended version of the bill by a vote of 27-19, after that chamber passed it last week. A bipartisan group of five women lawmakers in …

The Associated Press reports: Legislation banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy will become law in North Carolina after the state’s Republican-controlled General Assembly successfully overrode the Democratic governor’s veto late Tuesday. The House completed the second and final part of the override vote after a similar three-fifths majority — the fraction necessary — voted for the override earlier …

Reuters reports: A federal appeals court in New Orleans will hear arguments on Wednesday in a closely watched case brought by anti-abortion activists seeking to ban the abortion pill mifepristone, with potentially far-reaching impact on abortion access across the United States. The Biden administration will urge a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn last …

The Washington Post reports: Two-thirds of Americans say the abortion drug mifepristone, used in the majority of abortions in the United States, should remain on the market, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll. The poll finds that 66 percent of U.S. adults say mifepristone should remain on the market, while 24 percent say it should be taken off the …

Courthouse News reports: An effort to advance a bill that would ban abortion around the sixth week of pregnancy fell one vote short of breaking a filibuster in the Nebraska Legislature today. This means the bill is unlikely to move forward this year, despite Republican Gov. Jim Pillen making a public call for just that. The Legislature adjourned immediately after …

The Hill reports: Senate Republicans on Thursday night blocked a measure that would have allowed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to be added to the Constitution. Senators voted 51 to 47 to invoke cloture on a motion to proceed, falling short of the 60 votes it it needed. Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) were the lone Republicans …

Via press release from Sen. Chuck Schumer: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today stood at NYC’s Roosevelt House alongside trailblazing women, including Gloria Steinem, the Honorable Carolyn Maloney, Hunter College Pres Jennifer Raab, students and other national and local leaders, and announced that he will set up a historic vote in the Senate this week on S.J. Res 2, …

The New York Times reports: Voters pushed back decisively after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, approving ballot measures that established or upheld abortion rights in all six states where they appeared. Now, with abortion rights groups pushing for similar citizen-led ballot initiatives in at least six other states, Republican-controlled legislatures and anti-abortion groups are trying to …

Axios reports: In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said the state “secured an emergency stockpile” of up to 2 million doses of misoprostol. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) requested the University of Massachusetts purchase around 15,000 doses of mifepristone which the state says will “ensure sufficient coverage for more than a year.” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) stockpiled 150,000 …

The Washington Post reports: For decades, the mission statement of Veterans Affairs came from a line from President Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address on March 4, 1865 — “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan” — a phrase adopted by the department in 1959. On Thursday, Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis …

Reuters reports: The White House is jumping into state-level battles for women’s reproductive rights, lending legal and messaging advice to allies in states pushing restrictions as the Biden administration seeks to make abortion access a rallying cry in next year’s presidential election. By leaning on key local lawmakers and backing legislation to expand abortion rights, the White House is hoping …

The Associated Press reports: Virginia Senate Democrats defeated several bills Thursday that would have restricted abortion access in the state, including a proposed 15-week ban with exceptions that was a priority for Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. The Senate Committee on Education and Health voted the measures down on a party-line basis without debate after a subcommittee had previously recommended that …

Axios reports: Women in states with abortion bans are nearly three times more likely to die during pregnancy, childbirth or soon after giving birth, according to a report from the Gender Equity Policy Institute shared first with Axios. The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, and government officials and health experts are concerned that conditions will …

Gothamist reports: New York City plans to offer free abortion pills at four sexual health clinics as early as Wednesday, a city-funded expansion that seeks to break down barriers to abortion in low-income communities, Mayor Eric Adams announced Tuesday. “New York City has always been a beacon of leadership in this nation, and we’re going to continue to lead,” said …