STATEMENT: Two-years post-Dobbs decision, Equal Rights Advocates on dire impacts of continuously denied reproductive rights

June 24. 2024

Statement from Noreen Farrell, Executive Director at Equal Rights Advocates (ERA), which fights for gender justice in workplaces and schools across the country

SAN FRANCISCO  — Two years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, women’s lives, health, and financial independence are in peril ever since the constitutional right to access safe and legal abortions was stripped away from women, trans, and nonbinary people. Equal Rights Advocates (ERA) fights for gender justice in workplaces and schools across the country; there is no gender justice without reproductive freedom.  

The Dobbs ruling unleashed a cascade of legal attacks on women’s rights, with dire consequences. Anti-choice lawmakers and ideological judges continue to interfere with Americans’ freedom to access medicine and contraception. The same leaders that ended our right to abortion are determined to stop us from accessing contraception and starting families through IVF. They won’t let us end a pregnancy, now they don’t want us to prevent a pregnancy, making forced births all the more likely. With a new opinion on abortion expected imminently from the court, women’s health and economic security remain on the line. 

While the Supreme Court’s recent ruling protecting access to mifepristone is welcome, the Court dodged a ruling on the substance of the case, relying instead on plaintiffs’ lack of standing to challenge the drug. More legal challenges to restrict access to medications needed for abortions are imminent, and we know that the right-wing activists pursuing these cases will not stop until they get their way. 

The continuous attacks on reproductive rights have never been just about abortion itself. It’s evident that repressive lawmakers and complicit courts want to confine women to restrictive gender roles, perpetuating economic marginalization and inequality. Lawmakers must support measures that advance women’s participation and power in the workplace, such as paid family leave, pay transparency, and protection against gender-based harassment. 

ERA’s determination to fight for reproductive justice has only grown stronger over the past two years. The Supreme Court and other courts across the country have abandoned their responsibility to protect our rights. We must use all methods to ensure that women have access to safe and legal abortions that allow full participation in school and work. 

Noreen Farrell is available for interviews upon request; contact Nazirah Ahmad at [email protected] or (704) 290-6869.