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League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County
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Milwaukee, WI 53214
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LWV of Milwaukee County is a nonpartisan, grassroots political organization that encourages
informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public
policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.


HomeEmailing
Date: 6/24/2022
Subject: PRESS RELEASE: Joint Statement on SCOTUS Decision Re Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Center
From: League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County



6737 W Washington St., Ste. 2218, West Allis, WI 53214
(414) 273-8683  |  www.lwvmilwaukee.org
NEWS

For immediate release

Contacts: Peggy Creer, president, League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County, p.creer@lwvmilwaukee.org, 414-232-1138

Lyn HIldenbrand, Membership VP AAUW-Milwaukee Branch, lyne819@gmail.com, 414-467-2182
 

JOINT STATEMENT ON 

SCOTUS DECISION ON DOBBS V. JACKSON WOMEN’S HEALTH CENTER* 

FROM THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF MILWAUKEE COUNTY AND

THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY WOMEN-MILWAUKEE BRANCH 

*The League of Women Voters is an amicus partner in this case

The League of Women Voters and the American Association of University Women, each  founded more than 100 years ago, are devoted to empowering women to chart their life course. Central to this fundamental freedom is the right to decide if and when to parent. These decisions have profound impacts on all aspects of life: physical and mental health, family stability and well being, and economic and educational opportunity and destiny.


The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed in the 1992 case of Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, that “[t]he ability of women to participate equally in the economic and social life of the Nation has been facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives.”  


The SCOTUS decision released today is an assault on longstanding, hard-won reproductive rights. It will have far-reaching repercussions for all Americans. In Wisconsin, a 1849 law on the books – passed 71 years before women had the right to vote! – would criminalize abortions in most cases, without an exceptions for rape or incest. This law would take effect at a time when the United States, compared to other developed countries, is a nation with high maternal and infant mortality rates, a high child poverty rate, no guaranteed access to health care or child care, no guaranteed paid maternity leave, and where two-thirds of minimum-wage workers are women, many of them struggling to support a child.


A pregnant person is not a mere vessel. The course of every pregnancy is unpredictable and carries risks to health, fertility and life. Dangerous complications can occur suddenly, when medical decisions must be made quickly – decisions that should be made between a pregnant individual and their doctor, without government intrusion.  


Not only is the right to a safe and legal abortion a matter of personal freedom, it is also a matter of racial and economic justice, as limits on reproductive health services disproportionately impact Black, Brown, and low-income communities. Our basic liberty hinges on the right to control our reproductive lives. Government has no place in this decision-making, other than to ensure access to affordable, quality health care, including birth control and the privacy to make reproductive choices.


ACTIONS CITIZENS CAN TAKE:

  • Ask your state legislators to support the strong majority of Wisconsinites who want the 1849 Wisconsin abortion law repealed.

  • Contact your U.S. lawmakers to demand that sex-based equity be enshrined in the Constitution through the Equal Rights Amendment

  • Support reproductive health organizations and supporters of abortion rights. 

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The League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization encouraging informed and active participation in government.  It influences public policy through education and advocacy, but does not endorse or oppose candidates or political parties.  The national League of Women Voters was formed in 1920 after the ratification of the 19th Amendment ensuring women the right to vote.  Its mission was to educate women on voting matters and to encourage them to exercise their newly won franchise.  While the League of Women Voters retains its name to honor its founders, today's League includes men as members and its mission is to make democracy work for all.


For more information, visit www.lwvmilwaukee.org