(WXMI) — Lawmakers and leaders from Michigan and across the country are speaking out after the Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place nearly 50 years in a decision by its conservative majority to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The decision is expected to lead to abortion bans in roughly half the states.
Michigan Attorney General released a statement on the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which is the case that overturned Roe v. Wade.
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Nessel stated, "The overturning of Roe is not just the loss of a right; it is the erosion of our status as equal citizens under the law. As a nation, we trust in our highest court to hold sacred their duty, free from political whim. Today’s decision sets a dangerous precedent in reversing 50 years’ of settled law; creating extraordinary upheaval in the American legal system; and putting at risk other individual rights that generations of Americans fought to secure and preserve.
"Now we must do what our courts have failed to do: we must act to ensure that women are not permanently relegated to second-class citizens in this country. I will continue to fight for a women’s right to choose with the full weight of my office. Michigan residents must continue to fight for reproductive rights at the ballot box in November.”
Planned Parenthood of Michigan held a virtual press conference just after the ruling was released to share their reaction to the decision.
Dr. Sarah Wallett, chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood of Michigan said, “Let me be clear - abortion is still legal in Michigan, and our doors are open. But my heart is breaking for the millions of patients living in states that will cut off abortion access in the days and weeks to come. As an abortion provider, I know how devastating it is to sit in an exam room and tell a patient I can’t help them because state politicians have restricted their access to care. This scenario will now be a daily reality for my colleagues and their patients in hostile states across the country. Here in Michigan, I’m working with our team of expert doctors, nurses and health care professionals to ensure we can provide care to as many patients as possible. We are not going anywhere and we won’t stop fighting to protect access.”
Governor Gretchen Whitmer released a statement, calling it a "sad day for America."
"Today is a sad day for America as an unelected group of conservative judges act squarely against the will of the people and medical expertise. We can all sense the despair that tens of millions of Americans—our neighbors, family members and friends—are feeling right now. However we personally feel about abortion, health—not politics—should drive important medical decisions.
“With today's decision, Michigan's antiquated 1931 law banning abortion without exceptions for rape or incest and criminalizing doctors and nurses who provide reproductive care takes effect. For now, a Michigan court has put a temporary hold on the law, but that decision is not final and has already been challenged. The 1931 law would punish women and strip away their right to make decisions about their own bodies. I am deeply disappointed that Michigan’s Republican legislative leaders have been in court defending this draconian ban, to the detriment of women and families. Some legislators have gone a step further, proposing a 10-year prison sentence for abortion providers and a 20-year sentence for anyone manufacturing, selling or distributing birth control medication.
“I want every Michigander to know that I am more determined than ever to protect access to safe, legal abortion. Now is the time to use every tool in our toolbox to protect women and reproductive health care. That is why I filed a lawsuit in April and used my executive authority to urge the Michigan Supreme Court to immediately resolve whether Michigan’s state constitution protects the right to abortion. We need to clarify that under Michigan law, access to abortion is not only legal, but constitutionally protected. In addition, my recent executive directive instructs all state departments and agencies not to cooperate with authorities from other states who want to prosecute women seeking legal abortion care and instructs departments to increase protections for reproductive healthcare.
“I will fight like hell to protect every Michiganders’ right to make decisions about their own body with the advice of a medical professional they trust. I will not give in or give up for my kids, your kids, and the future of our great state.”
After the decision was released Friday morning, Right to Life of Michigan President Barbara Listing issued a statement.
"The U.S. Supreme Court justices who voted to overrule Roe are on the right side of history today. This monumental day gives the states the ability to restore legal rights to the unborn hopefully, in turn, ceasing the unjust slaughtering of the innocent in our country. We stand by our justices and thank them for their courage and wisdom in overruling a law that has plagued our society for the past 50 years.
We urge the public and pro-abortion activists to accept this decision without violence and retaliation. The overturning of Roe v. Wade was made possible by working with the legal system and following laws. We know that one day Michigan’s 1931 abortion law will be enforced again, and the unborn will be protected against ableism, sexism, and racism. We will continue to peacefully work towards this through the legal system.
We will also continue to use our resources and time to protect the right to life... In the meantime, we know that lives will be saved every day and families will be finding support at the 150 pregnancy resource centers across the state.
We honor the 63 million lives lost from abortion in the past 50 years by dedicating all our efforts towards keeping Michigan a life-affirming state. We cannot change the past but thanks to the overruling of Roe v. Wade, we can control the future for our children and families."
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson called the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson a “devastating blow to freedom in America.”
"Today’s decision is a devastating blow to freedom in America. It does not align with the will of the people. It was not achieved through democratic means, and it does not reflect who we are as Americans.
"The fight for a country that reflects, respects, and protects the voice of all Americans will continue. And I will continue to fight to ensure our elections enable every voice to be heard, every vote to be counted, and the will of the people to prevail."
Senator Stabenow released the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.
“In 1973, Roe v. Wade gave American women the fundamental freedom to make our own reproductive health care decisions. Now, 50 years later, the Supreme Court has ripped away this basic right.
“The fundamental question is ‘who gets to make health care decisions for a woman?’ The woman herself, based on her own faith, with her family and her doctor, or a bunch of judges and politicians?
“This Supreme Court decision will literally put women’s lives at risk. Twenty-six states are poised to move quickly to ban abortion—including 13 states with laws that can go into effect right now.
“It is hard to look past the anger that I and so many women across the country feel right now. From the President to the Congress to our local State Legislatures, elections matter now more than ever.”
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon said it is a day for celebration.
"Today is not just a day for celebration as it is an affirmation that life is precious, but it is a day for action. As I said when a draft opinion from the case was first leaked in May, we have come a long way since the Roe v. Wade decision. Technology allows us to see our baby before birth. Miraculous medical developments now make it possible for babies to survive outside the womb far earlier than when the Roe decision was made. Truly, so much has changed. But what has never changed is the preciousness of life. I am pro-life. I am pro-family. I am pro-mother. I am pro-woman. "
House Democratic Leader Donna Lasinski said, in part, "This Supreme Court ruling is a shocking and brutal assault on the rights of all Michiganders and my heart breaks for the devastating and mortal consequences of this obviously wrongful decision.”
State Rep. Rachel Hood (D-Grand Rapids) issued the following statement: "This is a tragic and frightening day in the United States. Today marks one of the first times in decades that we have rolled back the freedom of people in the United States, rather than expanding our rights to live freely. Bodily autonomy is a human right. As an elected official, I am committed to leading among the diverse team of citizens across this state, this country and the world, who will be mobilized like never before in history, to reverse this decision. I won’t back down until my daughters can be assured their bodies are their own.”
Another GOP gubernatorial candidate, Kevin Rinke, released a statement saying the Supreme Court acted appropriately.
Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss shared her thoughts on Twitter, saying it’s a day she never thought she’d see.
Today is a sad day - and for much of my life, one that I never thought I would see. The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v Wade is an attack on our rights and will jeopardize women's access to safe healthcare. https://t.co/pv3jksKfoh
— Rosalynn Bliss (@mayorbliss) June 24, 2022
Chief Medical Executive Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian also released a statement after the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling in Dobbs v Jackson overturning Roe v Wade.
“Decisions about whether to end or continue a pregnancy should be made by a woman with the counsel of her family, her faith and her doctor – not politics. As a physician, I know that the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States to overturn nearly half a century of precedent protecting safe, legal abortion violates the trusted relationship between a patient and their doctor. This ruling completely supersedes and overrides a woman's ability to dictate her health care in consultation with her physician. And it clears a path for draconian laws like Michigan’s 1931 criminal abortion ban to take full effect.
"I am concerned about how this decision will negatively impact health outcomes for women and children, particularly women and children of color as they have greater disparities in health outcomes in general. A woman may choose to have an abortion for a wide variety of reasons – none of them are anyone’s business but hers. If women and doctors are under threat of prosecution and jail time due to Michigan’s abortion ban, women will have a more difficult time accessing critical health care. And with abortion not legally available, women are more likely to undergo unregulated procedures that can jeopardize their future reproductive health and in some cases be life-threatening.
"SCOTUS’s ruling and Michigan’s abortion ban will not only punish women seeking abortion care, but it will also punish and criminalize health care providers who have dedicated their lives to providing the best care for their patients. It casts a dark shadow over the medical community – and doctors will now be forced to choose whether to honor our oath to our patients, to our communities and to our profession, or uphold a law that is unjust and discriminatory and does not reflect the wishes of the majority of Michigan residents.”
U.S. Representative Peter Meijer (R-MI) said the decision marks the start of “a proud new chapter in America’s history.”
“Today’s Supreme Court decision marks the beginning of a proud new chapter in America’s history. I have long maintained that our nation’s laws and policies should reflect a commitment to the sanctity of human life at every stage, and this ruling is a tremendous step toward upholding this critical moral responsibility. This decision protects our Constitution by returning power back to the states, the American people, and the lawmakers chosen to represent them. I am proudly pro-life, and I applaud today’s Supreme Court decision that will undoubtedly save unborn lives.”
Episcopal Diocese of Michigan’s Bishop Bonnie A. Perry released a statement saying the Episcopal Church supports a woman’s right to determine if she has a child.
"I write this as a person of deep faith and love for Jesus Christ.
I am a Christian. I am the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan. I oversee 74 congregations and communities of faith in southeast and south-central Michigan: some 17,000 people.
I am pro-choice. I support a woman’s right to choose what happens to her body. The teaching in the Episcopal Church since 1967 — explicitly supports a woman’s right to determine if and when she will decide to have a child. (See Resolutions by clicking on the button below.)
As a pastor of more than 30 years I have sat with women and with couples who have grappled with the decision to have an abortion. One couple stands out to me. They arrived unexpectantly in my office, sobbing, having just received the news of a devastating fetal anomaly. Their ultimate decision to have an abortion and end her pregnancy was not done unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently and prayerfully. I bore witness to their decision-making process and cried and prayed with them.
I have the deepest compassion and care for women and couples who make this decision.
I believe abortion should be safe, accessible, and rare. I believe it should be medically informed and not legislatively dictated, or judicially restricted."
Senator Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) called the ruling devastating.
“The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is devastating, and the 1931 trigger law in place here in Michigan is a near abortion ban that criminalizes nurses and doctors. The decision whether to have an abortion belongs to a woman in consultation with her doctor and her faith; politicians do not belong in the room. Dobbs sets a dangerous precedent for who has the power to make personal medical decisions, when, and why. Everyone deserves the right to make choices about all aspects of their lives, including their health, families, and livelihood, and restricting abortion is restricting economic opportunity, personal freedom, safety, and health.
“I will do everything in my power to support the right to a legal, safe, affordable, and accessible abortion. I can never forget the dangerous games anti-abortion extremists and those that enabled them have played with the lives of childbearing individuals and children.
“We’ve rallied once before to protect these rights, and we’ll rally again. As a mom of three young women, I will not sit by and let my daughters grow up in a country that does not value their health and right to decide what happens to their own bodies.”
Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) called the decision common sense in a statement released Friday morning.
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