Press Release Georgia
Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona Condemns Total Abortion Ban Going into Effect, Vows to Hold Extremist Politicians Accountable At the Ballot Box
For Immediate Release: Friday, September 23, 2022
Contact: [email protected]
NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona Condemns Total Abortion Ban Going into Effect, Vows to Hold Extremist Politicians Accountable At the Ballot Box
Arizona is now the 15th state enforcing a total or extreme abortion ban
Phoenix — Today, the Arizona Superior Court announced its decision to lift the injunction against a total abortion ban enacted in 1864, making Arizona the 15th state with a total or extreme ban on abortion access in effect. The law—written nearly 50 years before Arizona was recognized as a state—was blocked in 1973 by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe this June, Attorney General Mark Brnovich set the wheels in motion to reinstate the law and effectively ban abortion in Arizona.
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju released the following statement:
“MAGA extremists are holding abortion access hostage in Arizona, where 9 in 10 people believe that we should have the freedom to make decisions about our families and our bodies. These basic rights and freedoms are on the ballot this November, and voters are ready to make sure they’re heard loud and clear.”
NARAL Pro-Choice America Southwest Regional Director Caroline Mello Roberson released the following statement:
“Today is a difficult day for Arizonans—now subject to a total abortion ban that will have a devasting effect throughout our borders and beyond. We’re working alongside our 75,000 members across the Copper State to send a clear message: When you come for our rights, we come for your seat. We’re fighting tooth and nail to elect Kris Mayes as our next attorney general to fight for the overwhelming majority of voters who support reproductive freedom.”
This year, anti-choice lawmakers in Arizona doubled down on their attacks on reproductive freedom and abortion access, passing a 15-week ban on abortion (SB 1164) that was signed into law in March. The Arizona legislature is currently held by a razor-thin, anti-choice Republican majority, in stark contrast to the 90% of voters in Arizona who agree that each of us should have the freedom to decide how and when we start or grow a family, free from political interference.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe in its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—ending the constitutional right to abortion and opening the door for extremist state lawmakers to put total bans on abortion in place. This decision is already having a devastating impact throughout the country as 15 states are currently enforcing extreme or total bans on abortion. The people hurt most by attacks on reproductive freedom are those who already face barriers to accessing abortion care—including women; Black, Indigenous, and other people of color; those working to make ends meet; the LGBTQ+ community; immigrants; young people; those living in rural communities; and people with disabilities.
NARAL, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and EMILY’s List announced a partnership in May to collectively spend a historic $150 million on the 2022 midterms to elect reproductive freedom champions up and down the ballot across the country. Read more about NARAL’s endorsed candidates here.
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For over 50 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levels—including access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leave—for every body. NARAL is powered by its 4 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.