On Roe v. Wade's 49th Anniversary, Here's All The Ways We Protect It

     For 49 years, Roe v. Wade has provided tens of millions of women in the United States with safe access to reproductive healthcare. For 49 years, the GOP has attacked it. It looks like this may be the year they succeed, with the Christian fundamentalist Supreme Court allowing Texas SB8 to go into effect three separate times while blocking a vaccine mandate. So much for pro-life: banning abortion doesn't stop it; it merely makes it more dangerous. The Supreme Court is going to suffer consequences for doing this: 69 percent of Americans support the landmark 1973 decision, and the Supreme Court's low public trust is going to plummet this summer. Let's hope that gives America the momentum it needs to finally reform the Supreme Court.

     President Biden has done some extraordinary work to protect the right to choose. Since he took office, he has rescinded the Mexico City Policy, as all Democratic presidents do, and repealed the Title X Gag Rule, restoring federal funding to Planned Parenthood. At the same time, the House of Representatives has passed the Women's Health Protection Act, which would codify Roe, and passed a budget that would repeal the Hyde Amendment and the Weldon Amendment. The Senate needs to pass a Hyde and Weldon Amendment-free budget and vote on the WHPA. WHPA will never make it past a filibuster, but it presents a good opportunity to let America know which senators stand where on abortion.

     On that note, the Blue Dog Democrats, which make up less than 10 percent of the party and are its moderates, need to go. Thankfully, just one anti-abortion Democrat remains in the House: Henry Cuellar, a 17-year member from Laredo, Texas. His home was raided by the FBI just weeks before a primary in which he faces the same opponent, progressive Jessica Cisneros, that he beat in a 51-48 primary in 2020; let's hope this raid is enough to give Cisneros the edge. Let's also hope that 2024 is the year we ditch anti-abortion senator Joe Manchin, which would be enough to ensure that every Democrat in Congress and every Democratic governor supports a woman's right to choose. 

     When the WHPA fails to pass Senate (an ideal vote would be Women's Month in March), the Senate should at least pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to ensure some victory for reproductive rights in America. Meanwhile, in February, the Biden administration will restore the ACA contraception mandate that the Supreme Court deadlocked on after the death of Antonin Scalia in 2016. Doing this will ensure that President Biden has fulfilled or attempted to fulfill every abortion-related campaign promise he made.

     Other areas of reproductive health, including the expansion of maternal health benefits and the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act, are included in the Build Back Better Act awaiting a Senate vote.

     Meanwhile, the FDA has approved the permanent availability of mail-order abortion drugs. President Biden should sign an executive order working to expand the availability of these drugs to women across the country. He should also rally states to expand abortion access to all women in their state with no gestational limit, sign laws punishing sexual assault in the same way Texas punishes rape victims, and work to limit the activities of anti-abortion extremists while also providing funding to allow people who live in anti-choice states to travel to pro-choice states to get abortions.

     At the same time, even if religious freaks win the battle, they must not win the war. We must focus on flipping the Supreme Court by re-electing President Biden and a Democratic Senate. When we do this, we must take abortion before the new Supreme Court and have a woman's right to choose reinstated. For now, this is a declaration of war: we must mobilize every form of nonviolent resistance and legislative and elective power we have to protect the right to choose.