PHOENIX — The League of Women Voters of Arizona condemns the decision by the Arizona Supreme Court to reinstate the territorial-era abortion ban enacted in 1864.
“Today’s decision is a tragic setback for Arizona’s women and all Arizonans who can become pregnant. The court’s decision strips away the right of women and those who can become pregnant to control their bodies. It is unfathomable that not a single woman in Arizona ever voted on this ban in 1864, and because of this decision, women and those who may become pregnant have lost the right to reproductive freedom in Arizona. When women and those who can become pregnant can no longer make reproductive decisions for their own bodies, they are no longer equal individuals in our democracy.
"The League of Women Voters of Arizona will continue to fight for reproductive freedom for all Arizonans and stand in our power with our reproductive rights partners and all persons who fear the dangerous consequences of this decision. We call on all Arizona voters who believe in reproductive freedom to respond to this decision by signing the petition to amend the state constitution in November and enshrine abortion rights. Women and those who can become pregnant have the power to make their voices heard and fight back.”
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The Latest from the League
The League joined an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.
WASHINGTON — Today the League of Women Voters of the United States President Dr. Deborah Turner and CEO Virginia Kase Solomón issued the following joint statement in response to the 6 – 3 Supreme Court decision of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturns the constitutional right to abortion as recognized for nearly 50 years in the landmark cases of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey:
In June 2022, the US Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, ending the federal constitutional right to abortion. This ruling eliminated a fundamental right that women and people who may become pregnant held for nearly fifty years and left the right to abortion up to federal and state legislation.
One year after Dobbs, 20 states are enforcing more limited abortion bans than before the ruling, including 14 states that have banned abortion at conception. Additionally, many have implemented other restrictions that make abortion less accessible.
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