Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Supreme Court rejects Texas abortion law
2016-06-27

This article shared 646 times since Mon Jun 27, 2016
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email


In what has called its most significant ruling in years, the U.S. Supreme Court, on June 27, rejected a Texas abortion-access law.

The five-to-three decision is seen as a victory for supporters of abortion rights who argued it would have close all but a few clinics in the state.

Justice Stephen Breyer wrote the majority opinion, and was joined in full by Justice Anthony Kennedy—considered the swing vote on the abortion issue.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg joined Breyer's opinion and wrote a brief concurring opinion, which focused on what she called women in "desperate circumstances."

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton immediately praised the ruling, tweeting, "SCOTUS's decision is a victory for women in Texas and across America. Safe abortion should be a right—not just on paper, but in reality. -H."

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito were among those dissenting.

Lambda Legal Hails U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Protecting Access to Abortion

(Washington, D.C., June, 27, 2016) — Today, in a 5-3 decision in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down two provisions of a Texas anti-abortion law that, if allowed to go into effect, would have forced 75 percent of Texas abortion clinics to close. Lambda Legal, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the abortion providers, clinics and their patients, applauded today's decision.

"Today the Court affirmed that the Constitution protects the right to abortion, and clarified that the test used by the Court to determine whether an abortion restriction is unconstitutional —the 'undue burden' standard—is a rigorous test," said Camilla Taylor, Counsel at Lambda Legal. "When a state legislature passes a law restricting abortion, claiming that the law serves women's health, courts have an independent constitutional duty to scrutinize the legislation closely to determine whether the health justification is simply a pretext, and the law actually serves little or no health-related benefit."

Lambda Legal submitted a friend-of-the-court brief that encouraged the Court to scrutinize closely the legislative justifications for abortion restrictions. "This victory is a crucial win not just for women but for LGBT people as well, who also can need access to abortion services," added Taylor. "The landmark Supreme Court cases on which both LGBT people and women (whether LBT or not) depend for vindication of their constitutional guarantees of liberty and equality share a common doctrinal foundation. Additionally, women, whether LBT or not, share a common history of subordination and discrimination, including through application and enforcement of sex stereotypes, such as those reflected by anti-abortion regulations. As LGBT people know all too well, when government interferes with individual autonomy in decisions about family life, intimacy, and procreation, government stigmatizes people and deprives them of equal dignity. This ruling protects the dignity and equality of everyone who needs abortion services, and is a tremendous victory for reproductive justice. We congratulate our colleagues at the Center for Reproductive Rights on this significant win."

Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt involved a challenge to two provisions of HB2, a Texas anti-abortion bill that passed in July 2013: 1) a requirement that a physician performing or inducing an abortion have admitting privileges at a hospital located no more than 30 miles from the location where the abortion is induced; and 2) an ambulatory surgical center (ASC) licensing requirement, which mandates that abortion clinics meet structural and operational standards appropriate for mini hospitals. These provisions do not enhance patient safety or health, and serve only to make it harder for women to end a pregnancy.

Lambda Legal lawyers on the brief include Camilla B. Taylor, Kyle A. Palazzolo, Susan L. Sommer, Jennifer C. Pizer, Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, and Kara Ingelhart, in addition to Lambda Legal fellow Caroline Sacerdote.

Statement of Lorie Chaiten, Director, Reproductive Right Project, ACLU of Illinois

This morning, the United States Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision, struck down two Texas laws that sought to limit all meaningful access to abortion care in the state by imposing medically unnecessary and burdensome requirements on abortion providers. The Supreme Court's decisions blocks enforcement of the Texas laws — mirrored in a number of other states — and reinforces the Court's decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey which held that states may not place "substantial obstacles" in the paths of women seeking abortion care.

The following may be attributed to Lorie Chaiten of the ACLU of Illinois:

The Court's decision today is a strong rejection of the efforts of legislatures across the country to shut down abortion care under the guise of protecting women. As Justice Ginsburg noted in her concurring opinion, the Texas laws— demanding that doctors in abortion clinics have admitting privileges at local hospitals and that the clinics themselves become the functional equivalent of small hospitals — were not intended to advance women's health, but had the purpose and effect of making it more difficult for women in Texas to get abortions.

We are pleased that the Court has spoken directly to the effort to limit meaningful access to abortion care in the United States. This is a good day for women in America.

NCLR Statement on U.S. Supreme Court Decision Upholding Abortion Rights

(Washington D.C., June 27, 2016)—Today the U.S. Supreme Court struck down two restrictions on abortion enacted by the State of Texas in 2013 that would have shut down three quarters of the clinics in the nation's second-largest state. The 5-3 decision in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, upholding the constitutional rights of Texas women, will allow the remaining clinics in the state to keep their doors open and clear a path for other clinics to open or reopen to meet the needs of those who need abortion care across the state.

Statement by NCLR Policy Director Julianna S. Gonen:

"As it did one year ago in our landmark case that brought marriage equality to the nation, today the United States Supreme Court affirmed the constitutional protections that secure some of the most personal decisions one can make—decisions around family formation. Whether choosing a life partner or determining whether to continue or end a pregnancy, the liberties enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment are fundamental and cannot be legislated away by politicians. Today's ruling struck down unconstitutional regulations imposed by Texas on abortion clinics. Those clinics can now resume providing essential reproductive health care, as well as care to the LGBT community, which often turns to these providers as vital sources of compassionate and affirming care."

The National LGBTQ Task Force statement:

Washington DC, June 27 2016: "Abortion rights are LGBTQ rights, and today's historic decision reaffirms one of our most important constitutional freedoms. The opinion is an outright win for reproductive justice. Clearly the Texas law in question was not only morally wrong but was legally an undue burden," said Candace Bond, Policy Counsel, Reproductive Rights/Health/Justice, National LGBTQ Task Force


This article shared 646 times since Mon Jun 27, 2016
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

Pro-choice activists protest crisis pregnancy center on International Women's Day 2024-03-11
- The rainy weather on March 8 didn't deter a passionate group of pro-choice protesters from gathering in Old Town on International Women's Day. Following the opening of Women's Care Center—a crisis pregnancy center—directly next to Pl ...


Gay News

Three states sue to block abortion-pill sales 2023-11-07
- On Nov. 6, three states—Idaho, Kansas and Missouri—sued the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Department of Health and Senior Services for approving the abortion pill mifepristone and allowing its ...


Gay News

Mich. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to keynote Personal PAC's Oct. 17 luncheon 2023-10-05
- Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will be the keynote speaker at the 30th Annual Awards Luncheon for the abortion-rights group Personal PAC. The event will take place Tuesday, Oct. 17, at noon at the Chicago Hilton International ...


Gay News

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin to resume abortions after ruling 2023-09-15
- Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin (PPWI) announced that it will resume abortion-care services Monday, Sept. 18, after a judge ruled in July that an old state law that appeared to ban the procedure does not apply to ...


Gay News

Abortion-rights supporters score victory in Ohio 2023-08-09
- On Aug. 8, abortion-rights advocates won a crucial victory in Ohio, as voters defeated a measure that would have made the push to enshrine abortion rights in the state's constitution more difficult. The proposal known as ...


Gay News

Chicago activists counter-protest Rally for Life event 2023-06-24
- Chicago pro-choice activists attended a counter-protest of a pro-life rally marking the one-year anniversary of the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24. The counter-protest was organized by a coalition of organizations, including Stop Trans ...


Gay News

Abortion news: North Carolina, Montana, Nancy Pelosi 2023-05-17
- On May 16, North Carolina's GOP-led General Assembly moved to ban most abortions after 12 weeks, overriding a veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. The state House voted 72-48, along party lines, hours after the state ...


Gay News

Raoul among AGs filing Supreme Court brief to continue nationwide access to medication abortion 2023-04-14
--From a press release - Chicago — Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, with 24 attorneys general, filed a brief supporting continued access to medication abortion and other essential health care for all Americans. In the brief filed in the United States ...


Gay News

National Mobilization for Reproductive Justice: 'Hands off abortion medications' 2023-04-07
--From a press release - Today's decision in the Texas federal court challenge to the abortion pill invalidates FDA approval of the drug after 23 years of its safe use. This will dramatically alter abortion access across the country. If not ...


Gay News

Chicago LGBTQ activists respond to 303 Creative SCOTUS case 2022-12-09
- In response to opening arguments being heard in the United States Supreme Court case 303 Creative, LLC v. Elenis, activists from Affinity Community Services, Chicago for Abortion Rights, National Organization for Women and the Gay Liberation ...


Gay News

NATIONAL $1M donation, church departures, Harvey Milk, abortions, Grindr 2022-11-27
- In Ohio, Dayton-based insurance company CareSource is donating $1 million to United Church Homes to support the development of a senior living facility at the site of the former Longfellow School that will also aim at ...


Gay News

National Day of Action reproductive-rights rally set for Oct. 8 2022-10-04
- In Chicago, a broad group of more than 40 organizations—including a who's who of reproductive-justice groups—is organizing a rally in solidarity with a National Day of Action to defend and expand access to safe and legal ...


Gay News

Indiana judge blocks state's abortion ban 2022-09-23
- On Sept. 22, an Indiana judge blocked the state's abortion ban, putting the new law on hold as abortion-clinic operators argue that it violates the state constitution, NPR reported. Owen County Judge Kelsey Hanlon issued a ...


Gay News

Indiana abortion law goes into effect; PPIL expands services 2022-09-15
- Sept. 15 marks the day that Indiana's near-total ban on abortion takes effect, according to IndyStar. Gov. Eric Holcomb signed the new policy into law in early August after the Indiana General Assembly passed the measure ...


Gay News

Lindsey Graham proposes national abortion bill 2022-09-14
- On Sept 13, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) introduced a measure that would ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. It's the most significant proposal by Republicans in Congress to curtail the procedure since the ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.