IMPACT OF SUPREME COURT DECISION STRIKING DOWN ABORTION RESTRICTIONS
ORIAKU NJOKU — NATIONAL EXPERT ON ABORTION ACCESS & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE CARE-SOUTHEAST explains the impact of Supreme Court decision and barriers to abortion care that remain
Washington D.C.—In a recent decision, the Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law designed to shut down abortion clinics, meaning states cannot enact abortion restrictions under the guise of patient safety and health and clinics in Louisiana can stay open.
But this ruling is just the beginning — the legal right to abortion is the floor, not the ceiling. Advocates are mobilizing to ensure everyone has the abortion care they need in their communities and end the restrictions that push care out of reach even with the right to abortion in place.
The Supreme Court’s decision comes as threats to legal abortion in the United States have never been greater. Many women, and especially those struggling to make ends meet who are disproportionately women of color, will continue to face barriers to care, especially amid an increasingly hostile political climate:
- The decision comes amid a global pandemic that also disproportionately impacts communities of color, including Black women. Anti-abortion politicians have tried to exploit the pandemic to push even more restrictions and bans on abortion care;
- Since 2011, states have passed more than 400 laws restricting abortion — forcing clinics to close and placing medically unnecessary barriers in front of people seeking care. Last year saw an unprecedented wave of abortion bans passed in the South and Midwest.
- The impact of abortion restrictions falls hardest on people struggling financially, especially women of color, young people, rural and immigrant communities, and LGBTQ individuals.
Oriaku Njoku is the co-founder and executive director of Access Reproductive Care – Southeast, which provides funding and logistical support for Georgians and women across the region who cannot afford to pay for their abortion care. She is a national expert on abortion access and the impact of restrictions on Black women and communities of color and serves on the board of the National Network of Abortion Funds and ReproAction.
