Just days ago, the Supreme Court overturned fifty years of settled law, revoking a woman’s most basic Constitutional right to a safe abortion.
By overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court deprives a new generation of Americans of their personal liberty — the foundational freedom of this entire nation.
It is a shock. It is an outrage. It is un-American and anti-democratic.
As women leaders of the City of New York, we denounce this infringement of women’s rights and reaffirm our personal and political belief that women — and all people — have a right to their own bodies and their own choices.
And let us be clear: abortion is still legal in New York State. This city is – and will remain – a safe haven for people who need an abortion.
All people must have the legal right to reproductive healthcare of any kind, including safe, legal, accessible abortion.
Everyone must be free to live their own lives as they choose, without being constrained to retrograde laws and state-sponsored dominance.
Anything less is an affront to our fundamental rights and must be fought with fierce resistance – in New York and all over this nation.
New York City is synonymous with freedom, and rightfully so. We have long been at the vanguard of reproductive rights, as we have on so many other issues, and will carry on this proud tradition going forward.
Because make no mistake – overturning Roe v. Wade is only the beginning of a long-range plan to dismantle individual rights and roll back social progress in the service of minority rule.
From marriage equality to voting rights to racial equity to gun safety, this Court has every intention of shattering long-established protections and turning back the clock on the progress that so many have fought for so long.
This is more than an issue of reproductive rights and public health. It is a blatant assault on democratic values and personal freedom.
This is about who decides. Who rules, who has power, and who is deprived of it.
We must use our power of protest and our sacred right to vote to stop this assault on the freedom for our communities and our children.
Their freedoms are our freedoms – the right to privacy, to dignity, to self-determination.
NYC Health + Hospitals will continue to provide abortion services to all New Yorkers. This city will continue to welcome all those coming here for reproductive healthcare of any kind, including pregnancy termination.
New York City will continue to be a refuge and resource for all who seek to exercise their personal freedoms. We are also exploring ways to ensure that those who come here to do so aren’t deterred by legal or medical costs.
We stand in solidarity with all Americans in the fight to choose their own lives, form their own families, and determine their own destinies.
Abortion remains safe, legal and accessible in New York City – for anyone, from anywhere, who needs it.
By:
Ingrid Lewis-Martin, Chief Advisor, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
Lorraine Grillo, First Deputy Mayor, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
Anne Williams-Isom, Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
Meera Joshi, Deputy Mayor of Operations, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
Maria Torres-Springer, Deputy Mayor for Economic and Workforce Development, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
Sheena Wright, Deputy Mayor for Strategic Initiatives, Office of Mayor Eric Adams
