American Civil Liberties Union

Reproductive Freedom:
The ACLU's Reproductive Freedom Project protects everyone's right to make informed decisions free from government interference about whether and when to become a parent. Learn more about our work in reproductive health and take action to protect rights guaranteed to all Americans.



Freedom Files - Season 2
Ideological Exclusion

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VIDEO
Audio ACLU staff discuss the importance of reproductive freedom in ensuring the full-range of civil liberties

ANNIVERSARY MATERIALS
> The Equality Factor
> In the Courts
> In the Congress

TAKE ACTION
> Become a Reproductive Freedom Fighter!

BLOG POSTINGS
> Roe at 35
> A good night's sleep
> Freedom isn't gendered
Roe v. Wade: 35 Years
January 22, 2008, marks the 35th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark abortion rights decision Roe v. Wade. Watch the ACLU's new video and learn how reproductive freedom ensures the full-range of civil liberties.
2008 ANNIVERSARY MATERIALS
> The Equality Factor
> In the Courts: The year ahead
> In the Congress: The year ahead
TAKE ACTION
> Become a Reproductive Freedom Fighter!
PREVIOUS ROE V. WADE ANNIVERSARIES
> 2007: The World We Want
> 2006: Critical Times
> 2005: A Question of Whose Moral Values
> 2004: Keeping Abortion Safe & Legal
> 2003: A Right Curtailed

U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Federal Abortion Restriction
The ACLU sharply criticized a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court upholding a federal law banning certain abortions. It is the first abortion decision from the Supreme Court since Justice Sandra Day O'Connor retired. The ACLU said that the Court's decision will endanger women's health. Read more
ABOUT THE DECISION
> Frequently Asked Questions NEW!
> Legal Challenges to the Federal Abortion Ban
> Reproductive Rights Timeline
IN THE SUPREME COURT
> Justice Ginsburg's Dissenting Opinion
> ACLU Brief: Gonzales v. Carhart:
> ACLU Brief: Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood:
> Oral Argument: Gonzales v. Carhart
> Oral Argument: Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood
BLOG POSTINGS
> Action, Sparked! (4/30/2007)
> A Decision That Will Spark Activism (4/27/2007)
> Sleeping in the Rain (11/8/2006)

Federal Funding Bans on Abortion
The government has long excluded abortion from a host of federally-funded comprehensive health services. Many women including those receiving Medicaid, Native Americans, federal employees, and military personnel, among others, are denied coverage if they decide to end a pregnancy. Learn more >>
LOW-INCOME WOMEN
> 30 Years is Enough
> Public Funding for Abortion
> The ACLU & Securing Public Funding for Abortion
WOMEN IN THE MILITARY
> Congress Should Protect Military Women's Reproductive Rights
> ACLU letter in Support of the Davis Amendment
> Coalition Letter In Support the Shays Amendment
FEDERAL EMPLOYEES
> Denied Coverage: One Federal Employee's Story

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Press Releases view all

Tennessee Organizations Call On Fowler To Stop Misleading The Public On SJR127 (04/29/2008)
Five Tennessee organizations joined forces today to declare that state legislators should look beyond the election year rhetoric of the promoters of SJR127, including former State Senator-turned-lobbyist David Fowler. "Just say NO is our message," according to Judy Poulson, President of the League of Women Voters of Tennessee.

High Court Refuses to Review Arizona Prison’s Abortion Policy (03/24/2008)
Washington, DC - The United States Supreme Court announced today that it would not review a lower court decision preventing prison officials in Maricopa County, Arizona, from interfering with women prisoners’ access to timely, safe, and legal abortion care.

ACLU Online Video Examines Roe v. Wade's Importance for Civil Liberties, 35 Years Later (01/22/2008)
NEW YORK - On today's 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark abortion rights decision, the American Civil Liberties Union announced the release of an online video examining the role of reproductive freedom in ensuring the full-range of civil liberties.

Federal Court Protects Access to Abortion Care for Women Prisoners in Missouri (01/22/2008)
ST. LOUIS, MO – In a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, a federal appeals court in Missouri today upheld a ruling allowing women prisoners in Missouri to obtain timely, safe, and legal abortion care. Today’s announcement comes on the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Review Legal Questions Raised in a Challenge to Michigan's Abortion Ban (01/07/2008)
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court today refused to review legal questions raised in a challenge to Michigan’s third attempt at a dangerous and extreme ban on abortion. The American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Reproductive Rights, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America said they were pleased that a lower court decision striking down the ban would stand.

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Publications

Ms. Magazine Advertisement: The World We Want (07/31/2007)

After NYCLU Intervention, County Drops Neglect Charges Against Sexually Active Teens' Parents (06/11/2007)
NEW YORK - In an order signed Friday, the Suffolk County Office of Child Protective Services has dismissed neglect charges brought against the families of two teenagers because they had failed to stop their children from having consensual sex. After the New York Civil Liberties Union intervened, the county agreed to drop its charges.

Women Don’t Check Their Reproductive Rights at the Jailhouse Door (04/17/2007)

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Legal Documents view all

Arpaio v. Doe - Respondents' Brief in Opposition (02/20/2008)
Whether the Arizona Court of Appeals properly held that Maricopa County’s unwritten policy prohibiting the transportation of inmates for the purpose of obtaining non-therapeutic abortions violated the Fourteenth Amendment.

Doe v. Arpaio - Appellee's Answering Brief (05/12/2006)
The ACLU's Appellee's Answering Brief in Doe v. Arpaio.

ACLU Complaint in Weyhrich v. Wasden (04/18/2005)

Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for a Temporary Injunction in ACLU of Florida v. Hood (08/02/2004)

ACLU brief: Feminist Women's Health Center, et al. v. Burgess (12/02/2003)

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Legislative Documents view all

ACLU Letter Opposing Vitter Amendment to Indian Health Care Improvement Act (02/26/2008)
On behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a nonpartisan public interest organization dedicated to protecting the constitutional rights of individuals, and its hundreds of thousands of activists, members, and fiftythree affiliates nationwide, we urge you to oppose Senator Vitter’s amendment to “recodify” the Hyde Amendment in Indian Health Service law. The Vitter amendment is unnecessary because it restates current law. It is also bad policy because the Hyde Amendment marginalizes and stigmatizes abortion care and discriminates against a vulnerable population by undermining low-income women’s ability to access a fundamental reproductive right.

In Congress: The year ahead for reproductive rights (01/22/2008)

On the 34th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade: New Year, New Congress, New Possibilities (01/22/2007)

Memo to Interested Persons Outlining the ACLU's Opposition to Senate version of The Teen Endangerment Act (07/25/2006)

ACLU Letter to the Senate Urging Support of Amendments to Safeguard Teens’ Health (07/24/2006)

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Resources view all

In the Courts: The year ahead for reproductive rights (01/22/2008)

The Equality Factor (01/22/2008)

Roe v. Wade: 35 Years (01/18/2008)
January 22, 2008, marks the 35th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark abortion rights decision Roe v. Wade. This video features interviews with ACLU staff from across the organization concerning the role of reproductive freedom in ensuring the full-range of civil liberties.

The World We Want (01/22/2007)

The World We Want: Discussion Guide (01/22/2007)

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Fact Sheets view all

Frequently Asked Questions: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Federal Ban on Abortion Methods (05/23/2007)

Case Summaries: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Federal Ban on Abortion Methods (05/18/2007)

Know Your Rights: Pregnancy-Related Health Care in Prison or Jail (08/16/2006)
Information on inmates' right to pregnancy-related care while incarcerated.

Questions and Answers About the Supreme Court's Decision in Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, et al. (01/19/2006)

Abortion Bans: In the States (10/07/2005)
February 2006 - Abortion bans are a deceptive and unconstitutional attempt to prohibit abortions as early as 13 weeks in pregnancy. These bans dangerously interfere with the doctor patient relationship, banning abortions that doctors say are safe and among the best to protect women's health.

Reproductive Freedom : Abortion : Supreme Court Cases

Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Gonzales v. Carhart (09/27/2006)
Challenge to a federal abortion ban, adopted in 2003, that lacks an exception to preserve a woman's health and is so broadly written that it would prohibit abortions performed as early as 13 weeks into the pregnancy. DECIDED

Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood (09/22/2005)
Reviewing the legal standard by which courts consider abortion restrictions and whether laws regulating abortion must protect women's health. DECIDED

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