Earlier today, the Supreme Court finally handed down a ruling on a case we’ve been following very closely: the Louisiana abortion law that requires abortion facilities to follow basic health and safety rules. The case is June Medical Services LLC v. Russo.
It’s disappointing to share that they decided to cave in to the abortion lobby and set a precedent to allow abortion facilities to go rogue. You can read the full decision here. This June v. Russo case is a really big deal.
Here are a few important points about it:
- We know children don’t survive a visit to the abortionist, but the purpose of health and safety standards is ensuring that mothers survive a visit to an abortion vendor, which should concern everyone.
- Pro-life advocates don’t create the medical standards. We simply ask that they apply to abortion vendors as they apply to real medical professionals.
- Health and Safety Standards don’t close abortion vendors – VENDORS close when they decide not to follow the laws or invest in patient care.
Read more about the case here.
This March, we rallied in support of Louisiana’s law this past March (right before coronavirus struck). 20 bold pro-life students camped out overnight on the steps of the Supreme Court to help save our spot for the rally, and they proceeded to endure harsh treatment from pro-choice attendees the next morning. Read more about the “Protect Women, Protect Life” Rally here.
Real medical facilities obviously have to adhere to certain health and safety standards. But with this decision, a precedent has been set that abortionists are exempt from basic safety rules. It doesn’t take a medical or a legal expert to tell you why that is a terrible idea.
Here’s an analogy…
Imagine, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, that Walmart was required to clean their restrooms twice as often to help keep their customers from getting the virus. It would, of course, cost the company a lot of extra money in labor and materials to do so. Imagine, then, if Walmart went to court to fight this safety standard because it was inconvenient to them.
Only their customers stand to be harmed. And the company’s complete disregard for their customers would be blatant. And it’s the same with this abortion facility case.
In protest, we held a (mostly) virtual rally this morning immediately following the news of the terrible decision the Court handed down. But some of us were physically at the Supreme Court, too!
We WILL keep fighting to protect women from both the horror of abortion and dangerous facilities. Today’s ruling shows us that we only have 4 pro-life justices on the Supreme Court.
Thankfully, both of President Trump’s nominees to the Court, Justice Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, landed firmly in the pro-life camp. So this means, the 2020 Election will be more important than ever before to ensure we can get to a 5-4 or 6-3 pro-life majority on the Supreme Court that will reserve Roe and Doe.
Click here to watch further commentary from Kristan Hawkins about the ruling.
Reach out to your Students for Life Regional Coordinator or our sister organization, Students for Life Action, to sign up to help in Students for Life’s #VoteProLifeFirst 2020 Campaign.
