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Statement

Moms Cheer Passage of Ohio Constitutional Amendment Guaranteeing Right to Abortion

November 7, 2023
Reproductive Justice

Lisa Lederer, 202/371-1996

Statement of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO of MomsRising Together, the online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, on passage of Amendment 1 in Ohio today:

“By passing a constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to abortion and other reproductive health care, Ohio’s pro-choice majority today delivered a clear, unmistakable repudiation of the Republican anti-choice agenda and the tricks and deceits Republicans used to try to deny Ohioans this basic health care. Ohio now joins six other states, including Republican-leaning Kansas, Montana, and Kentucky, in rejecting the anti-abortion laws Republicans are trying to force on us all.

“MomsRising Together worked hard to support this victory. We reached out to 75,000 mom voters in Ohio with digital ads, texts, phone calls, and postcards, and we texted our Ohio members to remind them to vote as well. Most people who have abortions are moms, and moms want abortion care to be accessible to all who need it, regardless of where they live, their financial status, or the source of their health coverage. Being able to choose if we have children and if so, when and how many to have, which includes access to abortion care, is a fundamental right and one we will fight for and protect.  

“The abortion restrictions and bans SCOTUS allowed in its 2022 Dobbs decision are causing immense hardship and chaos across our country, causing women to lose access to reproductive health care, exacerbating our maternal mortality crisis, and much more. Moms, women of color, low-income women, young, rural and immigrant women, people with disabilities, and those who are LGBTQIA+ are suffering the most. Every day access to abortion care is restricted or denied is a day when the health and lives of moms and pregnant people are endangered.

“Moms in Ohio and across the country want lawmakers to improve maternal health care and build the foundations for success for hard-working families by making child care affordable, establishing comprehensive paid family and medical leave programs for when a new baby arrives or serious health crisis strikes, providing food and nutrition supports, and more – not deny access to the health care we need. Abortion bans have a devastating impact. Voters want them to end.”

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, stop discrimination against women and moms, and build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: www.MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.