North Carolina Justice Center opposes abortion ban proposed in Senate Bill 20

RALEIGH (May 3, 2023) – Late yesterday, the North Carolina House and Senate Republicans announced a conference bill to enact sweeping restrictions on abortion access. Senate Bill 20, which could effectively ban abortion after 10 weeks, is being rushed through with hardly any time for lawmakers to read and understand the bill, let alone deliberate on it. Abortion is health care, and everyone has a fundamental right to access life-saving care. We oppose SB 20 and condemn the subversion of the democratic process.

Abortion is also an economic justice issue and is at the heart of the North Carolina Justice Center’s mission as an anti-poverty organization. Restrictions on abortion indelibly harm people with low incomes and those with multiple marginalized identities—women, people of color, transgender and nonbinary people, immigrants, and people with disabilities.

All North Carolinians deserve to live in a state where they have bodily autonomy. Important healthcare decisions should not rest in the hands of the N.C. General Assembly, but with patients and their medical providers.

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