Schakowsky Statement on 35th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

SCHAKOWSKY STATEMENT ON 35th ANNIVERSARY OF ROE V. WADE

Washington, D.C.--U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a member of the Bipartisan Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, issued the following statement today to honor the 35th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade.

"Thirty five years ago today, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision to federally protect a woman's right to choose. Roe v. Wade brought an end to decades of state and federal laws that outlawed or restricted abortions. This historic decision put reproductive choice back in the hands of women and gave them safe, medical options.

Even today, 35 years later, the decision is still under attack. The threat to a woman's right to choose remains as real today as it did before the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision back in 1973. In 2003, Congress passed the late-term abortion ban and in 2007 the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ban. In 2006, we lost our pro-choice majority in the U.S. Supreme Court when President Bush tipped the scales of justice by appointing Justice Samuel Alito to the bench. Sadly, we could be only one court case away from overturning Roe v. Wade.

With so much at stake, it is critical that the pro-choice movement remain united and vigilant against all attempts to take away a woman's right to choose. As a member of the Bipartisan Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, I will continue to oppose any attempts in Congress to limit, restrict or deny a women's right to choose. It is also imperative that we elect a new President who doesn't turn the clock back by criminalizing abortions or denying women medically-safe options. We cannot afford to return to an era in which the government gets to decide what a woman can and cannot do with her own body....