Errington reflects on anniversary of the U.S. supreme court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson

INDIANAPOLIS- On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, which eliminated the federal right to an abortion and paved the way for individual states to restrict or ban abortion rights. This decision marked a significant setback for reproductive rights by restricting access to safe and legal abortions nationwide.

State Rep. Sue Errington (D-Muncie) released the following statement on the two-year anniversary of Dobbs:

“I've fought for the right of women to control their own bodies nearly all my adult life. A half-century ago when the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that the right to abortion was covered under the right to privacy in the 14th amendment, we thought that right was secure. We were wrong. Two years ago today, the U.S. Supreme Court abandoned almost 50 years of precedent by ruling that there is no constitutional right to an abortion, ripping away the protections granted by Roe v. Wade. Through the Dobbs decision, the Court took away a constitutional right, opening the door for abortion bans in almost half of the states. The decision has left massive abortion deserts and unanswered questions as many women navigate the broken exceptions system.

“Since the Dobbs decision, Republicans have introduced more than 380 bills attacking access to reproductive health care across the country, and 21 states have completely banned or severely restricted abortion. Upon the fall of Roe v. Wade, Governor Holcomb called a special session of the IN General Assembly, and in three days Republican legislators made Indiana the first state to pass a near-total ban on abortion. As a supermajority, they didn’t need a single Democrat vote to do so. (And I’m proud that they didn’t get any.) 

“To protect abortion rights, I offered legislation to change Indiana’s constitution to allow the people of Indiana to decide the matter themselves through a ballot initiative like our neighbors in Ohio have done.  Republicans bottled it up in committee. I offered another measure to allow a non-binding ballot question on abortion. Republicans voted it down. It’s frustrating, but I’ll never give up. The stakes are too high. Decisions about abortion care belong to women, not politicians.”