WASHINGTON, D.C. — In the dark of night – and without a public hearing, a Senate commission in the Puerto Rico Legislative Assembly advanced a bill modeled on the 22-week abortion bans sweeping the U.S.
This is a frightening development from unscrupulous anti-abortion extremists and should serve as a distinct call to all those fighting for women’s rights.
For more than half a century, NOW has worked tirelessly in support of a woman’s right to choose, because it has enabled generations of women to pursue educational, personal, and professional opportunities and life goals. Women must be free to make the personal decisions that shape our lives, our futures, and our families without government interference.
These bans will never stop abortions, they just add unimaginable challenges for those who are most vulnerable and are already victimized by systemic racism and limited economic opportunities as a result of discrimination and systems of oppression. Equitable access to abortion care is essential for reproductive, economic, and racial justice.
The Senate committee that proposed and passed this monstrous bill doesn’t want to hear from the public because they prioritize winning control over women’s lives over all else, at the expense of their constituents. No government has the right to dictate what a woman decides to do with her body, and these continued attacks are playing politics with women’s lives. NOW will continue to work with our grassroots and coalition partners to liberate abortion access and make reproductive justice for all a reality.
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The National Organization for Women (NOW) is the nation’s leading membership-based advocacy group dedicated to defending women’s rights, advancing equality and combating injustice in all aspects of social, political and economic life. Through educating, mobilizing, and convening a vast network of grassroots activists across the country, NOW advocates for national, state and local policies that promote an anti-racist and intersectional feminist agenda. Since its founding in 1966, NOW has been on the frontlines of nearly every major advancement for women’s rights and continues to champion progressive values today. More about NOW’s efforts and resources is available at NOW.org.