Press Release: Responding to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization
Press Release: Philadelphia LGBTQ Bar Association Responds to United States Supreme Court’s Decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Overturning Roe v. Wade
Philadelphia, PA – June 24, 2022: The Philadelphia LGBTQ Bar Association, the professional organization in Philadelphia providing a community for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ+) legal community in the greater Philadelphia region, expresses its profound shock, disappointment and solemn indignation in response to the decision of the five justices of the United States Supreme Court who overturned a fundamental right to bodily autonomy in overturning Roe v. Wade. This extremely dangerous decision will undoubtedly imperil the lives and wellbeing of millions of women, non-binary and transgender men, across the nation.
Today, the Supreme Court authorized states across the country to strip millions of Americans of the right to control their bodies and make their own critical healthcare decisions. In finding that the right to abortion is not “deeply rooted” in the history of the United States, the Supreme Court continues down a path fraught with dangers that risks the security of many other fundamental rights held by Americans. In his concurrence, Justice Thomas takes clear aim at revisiting and overturning the rights to privacy (Griswold v. Connecticut), the rights to engage in consensual same-sex sexual relationships (Lawrence v. Texas), and same-sex marriage (Obergefell v. Hodges). We agree with the dissenting Justices Breyer, Sotomayor and Kagan, who presciently write that “we cannot understand how anyone can be confident that today’s opinion will be the last of its kind.”
This reckless decision from the Supreme Court will serve as a raucous encouragement to state and federal legislators across the nation to legislatively challenge fundamental rights of Americans, including the right to seek an abortion, the right to obtain contraception, and the right to same-sex marriage. Here in Pennsylvania, the General Assembly is currently considering legislation that would abolish the right to choose. We oppose that and any other legislation that would insert the government in these healthcare and life decisions.
Let us be clear: the Philadelphia LGBTQ Bar Association stands with the millions of Americans expressing and feeling their profound distress today in the wake of yet another success in a relentless campaign to deprive Americans of long-fought fundamental rights. We won’t go back, and we won’t give in.
About the Philadelphia LGBTQ Bar Association: The Philadelphia LGBTQ Bar Association is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization dedicated to the advancement of the welfare and full equality of the LGBTQ+ community, promotion of the expertise and advancement of LGBTQ+ legal professionals in the greater Philadelphia area, and the education of the larger community on LGBTQ+ legal issues.
