People are trying to get abortions today

June 24, 2022

Here’s how you can help them ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

June 24, 2022

Dear Meteor readers,

The Supreme Court has just reversed Roe v. Wade in a 6-3 decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health. In his majority opinion, Justice Samuel Alito writes, “Guided by the history and tradition that map the essential components of the Nation’s concept of ordered liberty, the Court finds the Fourteenth Amendment clearly does not protect the right to an abortion.”

In other words: The right to abortion no longer exists.

We knew this day was coming. We knew. But still, our tears—maybe yours—are flowing. And we’re thinking about all of the pregnant people who will be denied care as trigger bans go into effect in (at least) 13 states—a process happening as you read this newsletter.

If you want to help those patients right now, click any of the states below to be taken directly to the relevant abortion fund:

These abortion funds provide transport, counsel, and crucial care to people seeking abortions right now in states that have whiplashed back to a pre-Roe age. They’ve never needed our support more.

In the immediate aftermath of today’s decisions, we will see anger and pain, finger-pointing, and blame games. We will see pregnant people being turned away from clinics, and horror stories of patients, and families, torn apart because they weren’t able to get a necessary medical procedure.

In the middle of all our rage—there will be confusion. But that’s what the right wants. We are holding close to the advice reproductive justice advocate Renee Bracey Sherman gave us last week: “It’s going to be utter chaos…But what we’re asking people to do is to avoid the sensationalism and the wanting to freak out. People will be trying to get abortions in that moment and they won’t know whether this tweet or that information is correct. So take a breath and fact-check.”

But in the end, it’s a dark day for women, for poor people, for science, for health care, and for the basic idea of the will of the people (since this is a minority-rule opinion). As Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan wrote in their dissent, “Whatever the exact scope of the coming laws, one result of today’s decision is certain: the curtailment of women’s rights, and of their status as free and equal citizens.”

Winning back those rights will be a long journey—but we will fight. We will keep having abortions and helping the people we love do so safely. We will fight, together, with everything we have.