Human Rights Campaign Reacts to Supreme Court Oral Arguments on Mississippi Abortion Ban that Threatens Roe v. Wade

by Aryn Fields •

HRC joined an Amicus Brief alongside dozens of LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations urging the Court to strike down the Mississippi Law

WASHINGTON — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) issued the following statement as the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, a case challenging a Mississippi law that bans abortion access after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The outcome of this case is particularly critical because in defending its law, the state has asked the Supreme Court to overrule Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the two cases that set the legal precedent to abortion access in 1973 and 1992 respectively.

In defense of both Roe and Casey in the Dobbs case, HRC Foundation joined an amicus brief led by the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) to the Supreme Court. The brief urges the Court to strike down the Mississippi law and discusses the impact abortion restrictions have on queer women, transgender men and non-binary people. It also lays out Roe and Casey centrality to the development of individual rights and equality case law, including in Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark civil rights case that guaranteed marriage equality.

Human Rights Campaign Legal Director Sarah Warbelow issued the following statement:

The Supreme Court must take swift action to overturn this dangerous, unconstitutional state law that robs people of their right to make personal, informed healthcare decisions for themselves and their families. We are hopeful that the Court will honor the precedent set by Roe v. Wade—enshrining abortion access as a constitutional right. Every day that this discriminatory law remains in effect there are thousands of people in Mississippi who are being denied safe, quality access to reproductive care and it is the most marginalized that are the most vulnerable, including LGBTQ+ women, transgender men and non-binary individuals.

Sarah Warbelow, Human Rights Campaign Legal Director

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