blog.Lawyers.com: The Assault on Reproductive Rights FOUR PART series
This is Part 1 of our four-part series. Please also see Part 2: Restrictions Go Radical; Part 3: Unquestionably Unconstitutional; Part 4: Fighting Back.
An avalanche of restrictive measures that strip women’s reproductive rights has passed in states all over the country in the past three years. Lawmakers behind the all-out assault on personal rights must hope that women and men alike have closed their eyes to the unprecedented rollback of women’s freedom to make decisions about their own bodies.
Legislators have passed laws to limit abortions and other reproductive care, attacking the facilities and doctors who perform services, limiting the ability to fund procedures and challenging outright the legality of constitutionally-protected rights.
More than 300 anti-abortion provisions have been introduced in the states so far this year. The country saw a record number of 92 abortion restrictions enacted into law in 2011. In 2012 a total of 43 more were enacted, and 2013 is shaping up for more of the same.
The assault began after a sweep of state-level conservative victories in the 2010 elections. “You saw a dramatic change in the composition of state legislatures and occupants in governor’s mansions across the country,” says Donna Crane, policy director for NARAL Pro-Choice America.
More: The Assault on Reproductive Rights Part 1: All-Out Attacks