On 16 May, North Carolina’s legislature upheld a bill that bans abortion after 12 weeks. This ban is a devastating blow for women, girls, and people in North Carolina who need abortion care, but also for many across the South of the USA who have turned to North Carolina for abortion care because of abortion bans in other southern states.
Abortion is healthcare—and it’s a human right. Abortion bans and restrictions go against the recommendations of all major medical associations—and they interfere with the right of people to control their own bodies.
The majority of North Carolinians do not want to see further abortion restrictions, yet the North Carolina legislature ignored this and pushed through this devastating ban. Three politicians—Representative John Bradford, Representative Jon Hardister, and Senator Michael Lee—had even specifically promised constituents they would not vote for additional restrictions on abortion, yet still voted to ban abortion at 12 weeks.
On 24 June, 2022, the US the Supreme Court ended federal protections for abortion rights by overturning Roe v. Wade, the case that previously protected the right to abortion in the US. This reversed nearly 50 years of essential abortion protections.
Since the fall of Roe, a patchwork of devastating laws now blankets the country
Take action to remind these politicians that abortion is a human right—and they have a duty to uphold the rights of their constituents, NOT restrict them!