Gov. Whitmer challenges 1931 law banning abortion as failsafe against the overturn of Roe v. Wade
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is making preemptive moves to protect the rights to safe and legal abortion in her state of Michigan. Whitmer, who is up for reelection this year, filed a lawsuit on April 7 using her “executive message” authority to ask that the Michigan Supreme Court decide whether or not abortion is constitutional.
“If Roe is overturned, abortion could become illegal in Michigan in nearly any circumstance—including in cases of rape and incest— and deprive Michigan women of the ability to make critical health care decisions for themselves,” Whitmer said in a statement, according to The Hill. “This is no longer theoretical: it is reality. That’s why I am filing a lawsuit and using my executive authority to urge the Michigan Supreme Court to immediately resolve whether Michigan’s state constitution protects the right to abortion.”
A 1931 law on Michigan’s books makes abortion a felony, but the 1973 landmark ruling in Roe v. Wade blocked the law. Whitmer is hoping to make the state’s Supreme Court officially declare abortion constitutional, thus striking down the 1931 law and ensuring access to abortion in her state should Roe be overturned, the Associated Press reports.
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Whitmer told AP, “It was important for us to take action now, to ensure that women and providers across the state of Michigan know whether abortions will still be available in the state because it impacts their lives and our health care providers’ practices. It’s crucial that we take this action now to secure and ensure that the Michigan Constitution protects this right that we have had available for 49 years.”
Pro-choice states have been rushing to lock down laws as they worry about a dark future for Roe v.Wade. Currently, 15 states in the nation have enacted laws to protect the right to abortion, according to NPR.
“No matter what the Supreme Court does in the future, people in Colorado will be able to choose when and if they have children,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said as he signed the Reproductive Health Equity Act Monday.
Meanwhile, Republican-run states such as Arizona, Texas, Idaho, and Kentucky have made moves to restrict access to abortions altogether, with Oklahoma being the latest.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma lawmakers voted to make abortions a felony with a 10-year prison sentence, giving exceptions only in cases in which the pregnant person’s life is in danger, CNN reported.
“This is a dark moment for Oklahomans and their ability to control their own bodies and futures and will have ripple effects throughout the region,” Jessica Arons, senior policy counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. “After seeing the devastation caused by Texas’ draconian abortion ban, Oklahoma politicians have taken the unconscionable step of imposing an even harsher ban on pregnant people seeking this essential health care.”
States such as Florida, Arizona, West Virginia, and Kentucky, have all banned abortion after 15 weeks, Politico reports.
Andrea Miller, president of the National Institute for Reproductive Health, told Politico, “States are moving in wildly different directions. … With the Supreme Court’s upcoming decision expected to exacerbate this trend, the need for state action to expand access for as many people as possible has never been clearer.”