Statement From UAP Executive Director Seema Jalan on the Overturning of Roe v. Wade
Statement from Universal Access Project Executive Director Seema Jalan:
“By denying reproductive rights at home, the U.S. Supreme Court is sending a signal to the world that it does not support gender equality, bodily autonomy, or women, girls and all people being afforded the opportunity to direct the course of their own lives.
Abortion is health care and a fundamental and inalienable human right. Women and girls’ participation in public life is dependent on their reproductive freedom, which requires access to safe abortion as part of a holistic approach that supports individuals to not have children or to have children and raise them in safe and healthy environments. The U.S. is now moving against the global tide that is liberalizing abortion – and, where it had once been a leader in sexual and reproductive health and rights, it is now one of the few Western countries in regress, emboldening organized opposition domestically and globally.
We already know how abortion restrictions have played out around the world, under years of the harmful global gag rule and other restrictive policies: Essential health care is put further out of reach, and many people will put their lives and livelihoods at risk by seeking unsafe abortions, with the greatest and disproportionate impacts on people who already face significant structural barriers to healthcare. Even as we move backwards at home, the U.S. can and should continue to lead with humility and renewed urgency to fulfill its commitments to advance sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice, including through foreign policy.
The Universal Access Project stands in solidarity with women, girls and those who can get pregnant, and with the medical professionals and organizations who will continue to support just and equitable access to essential, dignified reproductive care, for everyone, everywhere.”
Statement from United Nations Foundation President and CEO Elizabeth Cousens: UN Foundation Supports Reproductive Rights, Bodily Autonomy
