One year ago, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade and reversed a five-decade long law, deepening the massive gender, racial and economic inequities in our country and diminishing health care access throughout the country while taking away the rights of millions of people.
Since that time, Nebraskans from across the state have protested, rallied and contacted elected officials. Together, as Nebraskans for Abortion Access, we celebrated when the promise of a special session to ban abortion never happened in summer 2022. We applauded our neighbors in Kansas when they rejected an effort to eliminate state abortion protections and then again when voters in every state with abortion on the ballot defended reproductive rights.
We worked to inform voters last November and prepared advocates to show up, speak up and protect abortion access during the 2023 Nebraska Legislative Session. We joined hundreds of Nebraskans in support of reproductive rights at the Capitol for hearings and floor debate, outnumbering anti-abortion activists armed with empathy, facts and majority support from the medical community. The hearing room was full of experienced professionals in white coats explaining the dangers of inserting politics into health care. Parents lined the hallways waiting for their chance to tell their stories of pregnancy complications and loss so complex that an extreme six-week abortion ban doesn’t even come close to considering their lived experience. Faith leaders waited hours for a chance to share a spiritual perspective rooted in humanity. Young people brought energy, defiance and spirit to our growing movement while older generations—who remember a time before legal abortion access existed—reminded us this fight is not over. In late April, reproductive rights were protected once again in Nebraska when a six-week abortion ban failed.
But because anti-abortion lawmakers will stop at nothing to force their personal beliefs on others—with disregard for the medical expertise of thousands of local professionals—a 10-week abortion ban amendment was added to an already discriminatory bill that took away parental rights and health care for trans youth. This bill narrowly passed in May and severely limited Nebraskan’s ability and freedom to make their own decisions about their lives, bodies and futures. A reminder that everyone has a human right to bodily autonomy—being trans or pregnant doesn’t change that. (While the bill was signed into law, ACLU of Nebraska, on behalf of Planned Parenthood North Central States, filed a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction from the bill being enforced. The issue is currently with the courts.)
It’s been a long year and we shouldn’t have to fight like this for our basic rights to have control over our own health care. But we will. And we aren’t alone. A majority of Americans, including Nebraskans, believe abortion should be legal and think that the decision-making process should be left to patients, not politicians.
Together, we’ll continue to advocate to keep extreme restrictions and politics out of health care. We will not sit by while our rights to make our own decisions about our bodies are stripped away. We remain rooted in our values and will keep working to create a future where were all have the freedom to safely care for ourselves and our families.
Our bodies belong to us. To support our work and invest in our advocacy efforts, donate today.