Issued May 03, 2022
WASHINGTON, DC – Following the news leak that the Supreme Court majority is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, Mary Kay Henry, president of SEIU, released the following statement:
“This leaked opinion confirms our worst fears that this extremist, anti-woman majority of the Supreme Court has always intended to take away a woman’s fundamental right to an abortion. Working people stand with our partners across the reproductive justice movement in denouncing this audacious attempt to undo 50 years of precedent that reaffirmed women’s fundamental right to control our reproductive destiny. As the largest healthcare union in America, we refuse to go backward and will do everything in our power to keep abortion safe and legal.
The leaked opinion only emboldens Republican state legislatures that are already racing to pass their own draconian bans, endangering women’s and girls’ lives and sending us back to the days of back alley abortions. In the meantime, it is important to know that until the Supreme Court has taken final action, a woman’s right to an abortion is still protected by the Constitution.
Ultimately, protecting Roe is about protecting women's’ fundamental right to control our bodies and our destinies. Working people across our union—janitors, security officers, warehouse workers, food service workers, airport workers, public service workers, healthcare workers—know that the rights of women, immigrants, people of color, the poor, and LGBTQ+ people are all connected. With this latest news from the Supreme Court, we are more determined than ever to hold leaders accountable at the ballot box in November and elect more pro-choice candidates to office.”