10th News: The Court has Overturned Roe. We Must Resolve to Fight.
I am writing to you from the plane home from D.C., still reeling from the Supreme Court's devastating decision today to overturn Roe v. Wade, upending nearly 50 years of established law protecting women's reproductive rights.
When I learned the news, the first thing I did was call my wife. We both cried thinking about the adverse impact this decision will have on so many women and their families – thinking about how a decision like this would have affected our own family decades ago. In fact, nearly a century ago, Julie's great-grandmother died in her bed from a botched abortion, leaving four young children motherless. The idea that women now may have to revert to that reality strains credulity.
I also got a text from my mother calling out the Supreme Court for making her, and every woman in America feel less safe, less equal under the law.
Before going to the House chamber to vote, I walked to the Capitol Rotunda and the Portrait Monument. After we voted, I joined my Democratic colleagues walking from the House to the Supreme Court to declare that we trust women and the choices they make in the privacy of counsel with their doctors and families. I doubt if the Justices heard us, and if they did, I doubt they would have cared. But our solidarity in taking this action surrounded by colleagues that care as strongly as I do gave me hope. It showed me a glimpse of the future.
Like you, I am heartsick thinking about the countless young women and families that will be adversely affected by today's ruling. This is a day that we have anticipated for some time, but that has not blunted my outrage, nor the outrage of millions across the country. The Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization will forever be a stain on the legacy of the Supreme Court.
I am angry. Angry about how we came to have this hyper-conservative court. Angry that the Justices lied when they stated Roe was established law in their confirmation hearings. Angry that, as Justice Thomas indicates in his concurring opinion, this court is not yet done targeting the rights of those they see as different.
As well, I know the fear of women with whom I work, and indeed women across the country. How is it that, in 2022, women raised with the confidence to achieve and be anything they set their sights upon, are now told that they are less free than their male peers? That their rights are limited. Their destinies not their own.
We know that this decision will have long and unimaginable consequences. We know that women across the country will now lose their access to safe health care. We know that, as a result, women will die, families will fall into poverty, and America will be immeasurably poorer.
Importantly, in Illinois, abortion remains legal. Already, we have seen Gov. Pritzker call for a special session to further protect women's reproductive health, making clear that "Illinois will be a safe haven for the exercise of your reproductive rights." Sadly, we cannot make those same guarantees for our neighbors across state lines. Already, we know that 26 states are likely to ban abortion, with 22 states that already have laws on the books in anticipation of this day.
As your representative, I will always fight for a woman's right to choose. I'm proud of my vote to codify Roe and deliver the promise of safe health care to the next generation. If they had the votes, the Senate could pass the Women's Health Protection Act which the House passed and sent to their chamber, which would codify Roe and protect a women's right to choose. As your representative, I want to hear from you; if you have stories that you would like to tell about your reaction to the Court's ruling, or if you have questions about the ruling, I hope you are available to join my Congress on Your Corner tomorrow in Deerfield.
I will spend this week mourning what our nation has lost. But I will spend the rest of my days in Congress fighting to right this wrong.
Onward,
Bradley S. Schneider
Member of Congress