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SWLC’s Statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s Decision

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Today we all have heavy hearts because of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to take away healthcare rights from millions of Americans. This ruling strips away a constitutionally protected right and elevates states’ interest in a fetus over a pregnant person’s right to bodily autonomy. This decision also rolls back 50 years of pregnant people being able to make sound decisions about their life and health.  

Trigger bans in half of the states will take effect today. People who went to sleep last night with the right to make their own bodily and family decisions woke up this morning to criminal laws surrounding abortion. More states will likely follow with new bans of their own.  

In states like Oklahoma, abortion providers now face criminal consequences. Performing an abortion or attempting to perform the procedure is a felony punishable by a maximum fine of $100,000 or a maximum of 10 years in state prison, or both. The pregnant person who sought the abortion would not be criminally charged or convicted for seeking or obtaining the procedure; however, a failed Louisiana bill proposed this legislative session sought to do just that, signaling this as a possibility in states willing to pass similar measures through.  

States like Idaho are already considering banning emergency contraception like Plan B. Survivors of rape would have no option but to carry a pregnancy to term in states with abortion and emergency contraception bans.  

Other states have banned the shipping of medication for abortion. For people facing ectopic pregnancies, medication abortion pills are lifesaving. There are already stories of pharmacists refusing to fill prescriptions for this necessary medication.  

This decision also has much farther-reaching implications. This decision isn’t just about the right to make life and healthcare decisions about pregnancy. Justice Alito tried to distinguish abortion rights from other privacy rights through discussion over “potential life” and how abortion poses a “critical moral question.” However, the further justification for overturning the right to abortion has the potential to overturn other privacy right based critically moral questions by the same groups that oppose abortion. There is no doubt we will see future challenges to the right to contraception, the right to marriage, and the right to other bodily decisions. Justice Thomas’s concurrence in today’s decision specifically states his willingness to revisit the precedents establishing these very rights. We have already seen several states ban discussion of the LGBTQ+ community in schools and access to transgender care.  

Today is hard. This decision on the right to abortion is demoralizing. But we need to keep up the fight and turn large setbacks like this to our advantage. We should use this time to refocus our fight. 

We will center the abortion movement on people of color. We will uplift voices that have not always been heard. We will use this time to make sure we are including the LGBTQ+ community in conversations about reproductive rights and justice.  

We need to protest for the right to abortion and in the same breath discuss the crisis of reproductive healthcare “deserts.” When we talk about bans off our bodies, we also need to remember those bans include everything from abortion to the right to have a child and not be subject to forcible sterilization. 

We cannot and will not be silent in the face of this clear attack on the rights of more than half of Americans. Today we reset from this devastating blow. Tomorrow, we uplift historically silenced voices. Tomorrow, we channel our anger and sadness into action. Tomorrow, we restart the fight for access to abortion and reproductive justice. 

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Debrief on the U.S. Supreme Court Decision

Our panel of experts will break down the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision and what it means for the future of New Mexican pregnant people. We will also discuss the dangers of Crisis Pregnancy Centers and their role in the anti-abortion movement.

Register Here

Frustrated and scared about the news?

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We are right there with you, feeling the range of emotions from today’s news – anger, frustration, heartbreak, and even though we were bracing ourselves for it, shock. However, today abortion remains LEGAL, and we are fortunate to live in a state where abortion will remain legal, even if Roe is overturned. BUT we must remain VIGILANT. The Southwest Women’s Law Center is committed to fighting for access to safe abortion for future generations. Keeping women and girls in New Mexico safe and healthy is our priority. 

What the SWLC is doing to help the abortion healthcare crisis:

The SWLC is working to expose the Crisis Pregnancy Center (CPC) industry in New Mexico. You may have driven by a CPC and not even realized it. With names like, “Pregnancy Resource Center”, “Casa de Mariposa”, and “Women’s Pregnancy Options”, it’s easy to mistake them for legitimate clinics. But CPCs are part of a national anti-abortion network collecting sensitive personal and medical information from pregnant people seeking healthcare. 

CPCs are anti-abortion organizations that target low-income people facing unintended pregnancies to prevent them from accessing abortion and contraception. In recent years, the anti-abortion movement has expanded and elevated the role of CPCs within the broader movement, in part by facilitating the coordination of sophisticated data collection and exploitation systems.  

Read more in Designed to Deceive, the report by the SWLC and partners that make up the Alliance: State Advocates for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality.

TAKE ACTION

Show up for Abortion Rights TODAY, May 3rd, 5 PM:
Albuquerque: Federal Courthouse, 333 Lomas Blvd. NW
Santa Fe: Federal Courthouse, 106 S. Federal Place
Las Cruces: City Hall/Albert Johnson Park, 700 N Main St.

Support these organizations:

Abortion funds:
Indigenous Women Rising
New Mexico Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
Mariposa Fund

Abortion Healthcare and Policy:
Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains 

Work to expose CPCs and Abortion Healthcare Policy:
Support the SWLC and join us in preventing CPCs from receiving state funds or gaining more momentum in New Mexico.

URGENT: CPC Report Re-release

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BREAKING NEWS:

Groundbreaking Report Highlights How CPCs Are Breaching Data Privacy of Pregnant People for the Anti-Abortion Movement   

The Alliance is re-issuing our groundbreaking 2021 report, Designed to Deceive: A Study of the Crisis Pregnancy Center Industry in Nine States, with an urgent warning about the role of the newly expanded crisis pregnancy center (CPC) industry, is poised to play in the post-Roe United States.

Learn More about what our lawmakers and communities can do to protect pregnant people’s health and wellbeing.

The Southwest Women’s Law Center is committed to keeping women and girls in New Mexico safe and healthy. Please make a gift today and help us continue our important work, such as preventing pregnant people from being surveilled. Thank you!

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The Southwest Women’s Law Center Statement Regarding the 49th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

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January 22, 2022

It was an early morning in December when the U.S. Supreme Court (“Supreme Court”) first heard the case involving a Texas law limiting when a person could get an abortion. Roe v Wade was heard first in 1971 and again in 1972, but the Supreme Court finally decided on January 22, 1973. They ruled that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects the right to privacy and that a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion falls within that right to privacy.

Today we face a similar position – a law limiting when a pregnant person can get an abortion. Forty-nine years later, it is again left to the Supreme Court to determine if a pregnant person has the right to choose when to have an abortion. In short, the Dobbs v. Jackson case is asking to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The data is clear: Americans support Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to access abortion. In fact, over 79% of Americans support some system of choice for abortion seekers.

If Roe v. Wade is overturned, it is projected that roughly 25 million women and girls of reproductive age will lose abortion access entirely in the United States. Safe and legal abortions would virtually be unavailable for one-third of people ages 15–49 who may need it.

These estimates are based on populations in more than 20 states that have a combination of pre-Roe v. Wade bans referred to as “trigger bans” that will automatically make abortion illegal if the Court’s decision overturns Roe v. Wade or interprets it more narrowly.

In New Mexico, we are fortunate the “trigger ban” is no longer in effect. In 2021, the SWLC worked with allies to repeal a pre-Roe bill criminalizing abortion in New Mexico. Repealing the ban means that even if the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision for Dobbs overturns Roe v. Wade, pregnant people in New Mexico will still have access to legal and safe abortions. On this 49th anniversary of the decision of Roe v. Wade, it’s uneasy to think we as a country are in this precarious position. However, we are lucky to have a forward-thinking legislature in New Mexico that supports women’s rights and autonomy.

New Polling Data Shows that New Mexico Voters Overwhelmingly Support the Creation of a Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 17, 2021
CONTACT: Terrelene Massey, Email, 505-244-0502

ALBUQUERQUE, NM – The Southwest Women’s Law Center (SWLC) and the Paid Family & Medical Leave (PFML) Coalition have released the results of a recent poll showing a large majority of New Mexicans are supportive of a state-administered Paid Family & Medical Leave program.

Since 2016, the PFML Coalition, convened by the SWLC, has worked with legislators to advocate for the passage of the Paid Family & Medical Leave Act (PFMLA). In 2021, PFMLA was sponsored by Representatives Christine Chandler, Patricia Roybal Caballero, and Linda Serrato. The PFMLA would establish a Paid Family & Medical Leave Trust Fund to be administered through the NM Department of Workforce Solutions. The PFML Trust Fund would be supported through employee and employer contributions and provide up to 12 weeks of compensation for a qualifying event. Qualifying events include:

  • Bonding with a new child
  • Managing a serious health condition requiring treatment by a medical provider
  • Caring for a family member with a serious health condition
  • Exigencies arising out of family member being on active-duty military service
  • Certain events related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking

SWLC, on behalf of the PFML Coalition, commissioned Change Research, a public opinion polling company, to conduct an online poll of 750 registered voters statewide from October 10-13, 2021, using its Dynamic Online Sampling to attain a sample reflective of the electorate.

The polling data clearly shows that NM voters of all types strongly support a proposal for 12 weeks of paid leave and will support legislators who vote to pass such a proposal.

Key findings from the survey include:

  • More than three-quarters (77%) support the creation of a family and medical leave insurance program that would ensure up to 12 weeks of partially paid leave for employees to welcome a new child, care for a family member with a serious health concern, or to manage their own serious health condition. A majority (55%) strongly support this program while only 18% are opposed.
  • This proposal is supported by every group in the electorate regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, political party, or region of the state.
  • When voters hear that the cost of this program to workers would be only $2 to $6 per week, support expands to 81%.
  • Elected officials who support this proposal will strengthen their position with voters and will undermine it if they vote against it. Overall, 55% of voters say they would be more likely to vote for a candidate for elected office who supports this proposal. Just 18% indicate they would be more likely to vote for someone else. Likewise, a majority (55%) say they would be more likely to vote for someone else if a candidate opposes this proposal.
  • Among respondents who identified as self-employed, contractors, or business owners, 71% are supportive of establishing a state-administered Paid Family & Medical Leave program.

It is clear from this polling data that New Mexico voters are overwhelmingly supportive of the passage and implementation of the Paid Family & Medical Leave Act. It is time for the legislature and the Governor to act to ensure that New Mexico workers no longer face the loss of their livelihood due to a health condition or family caregiving responsibilities.

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Review Paid Leave Poll: New Mexico Voters

Download PDF Press Release


The Southwest Women’s Law Center (SWLC) is a non-profit legal advocacy organization founded in 2005. The Center is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico and serves women in the entire state.

In the News: Crisis Pregnancy Centers Endanger Women’s Health—With Taxpayer Dollars and Without Oversight

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10/29/2021 by Carrie N. Baker and Carly Thomsen via Ms. Magazine
Photo: More than 2,500 anti-abortion centers are currently operating throughout the United States. (NARAL Pro-Choice America / Flickr)

“Modern CPCs are plugged into the global anti-abortion movement’s sophisticated digital infrastructure, which facilitates expansion, client surveillance, and systemic, coordinated promotion of anti-abortion disinformation.”

—The Alliance, “Designed to Deceive”

While all eyes are on the Texas abortion ban and two Supreme Court cases poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, a new report shines light on the less visible side of the anti-abortion movement: “crisis pregnancy centers” preying on low-income women—and particularly Black women—with false promises, dangerous misinformation and stigmatizing judgment.

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