Our condemnation of the vicious decision of the Supreme Court of the United States to overturn the fundamental human rights offered by Roe v. Wade could not possibly be stronger.
There is no question who will be affected the most by the appalling decision: Black women, people of color, and low-income families. Research from the CDC shows women of color obtain two-thirds of all abortions in this country, a fact directly linked to structural racism. Research think tank The Guttmacher Institute attributes disparity in part to a systemic lack of access to contraceptives. According to the CDC, U.S. maternal health outcomes are worsening at an alarming rate. Black women suffer the most severe consequences of this crisis. The Supreme Court’s decision will impact families, communities, and generations to come unless we act quickly and decisively to right this wrong.
But make no mistake: this is not just about women or abortion. By overturning decades of established precedent, the Court has upended established norms. Justice Thomas has signaled what’s next: civil rights including same-sex and interracial marriage and access to contraception are in danger. We should prepare for continued destruction of settled law and decades of progress for hard-fought human rights. The attacks will keep coming.
The U.S. government must not be allowed to violate the right to make private health care decisions nor violate the constitutional right to privacy. We must walk forward together in resistance!
While abortion providers in Southern states like Alabama and Kentucky have already shut down, North Carolina – for now – offers refuge. Yet it is imperative to make sure our elected officials remain accountable to the will of the people. More than 52 percent of North Carolinians support full access to legal abortion, while only 10 percent support the ban.
The state legislature must codify the protections previously afforded to Americans under Roe v. Wade, and they must act expeditiously. The NAACP toolkit on reproductive rights can be found here, with talking points for contacting politicians.
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP calls on our community to join us in action and in solidarity. We will not take a single step back. Together, we can register those in our region to vote, demand equal rights, bodily autonomy and the right to privacy for all people, support national abortion justice movements and organizations centering and uplifting BIPOC experiences, lives, and leadership, and support local movement organizers like the Carolina Abortion Fund.
The only way forward is together. To join our local branch of the NAACP, please visit us online at https://www.chapelhillcarrboronaacp.com.