Re: “Roe v. Wade is all but overturned” [April 15, Opinion].
Though the headline is bleak, the message is right on: We’re losing reproductive rights in large part because the Democratic Party has not put up a fight. Despite periodic vows to uphold choice, the party has stayed silent as Republicans and the far-right go on attack. It did nothing to sound the alarm when the Hyde Amendment was inserted back into the federal budget. This measure denies federal funds for abortion — injuring poor and disabled Medicaid recipients, clients of Indian Health Services and military personnel.
But not everyone is standing by passively. The National Mobilization for Reproductive Justice, ReproJusticeNow.org, calls for people to speak out now and when the Supreme Court decision comes down. In Seattle, we’ll gather at the Federal Building at 5 p.m. if the decision comes out in the morning, or at 5 p.m. the next day if it’s announced in the afternoon. Roe may fall, but the need and fight for abortion and reproductive justice will never stop.
Helen Gilbert, Seattle, national coordinator, National Mobilization for Reproductive Justice