With a smear campaign and a Congressional vote to defund Planned Parenthood, it’s hard to believe that the landmark Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade happened almost half a century ago, today.
Forty-three years ago, the Supreme Court upheld a woman’s right to choose. But today that right and other reproductive rights, including access to birth control, are still being challenged. What’s worse, the reproductive rights of the most vulnerable women are the most at risk. It’s this lack of equity, health, and rights that are putting women on the frontline of environmental challenges, too.
Comprehensive reproductive health services are a vital way to help women plan their future and move toward full equality. That self-determination and right to health is critical to realizing their potential as leaders against climate disruption. Unlike many politicians who are attempting to strip these rights from women, the American people understand how necessary these rights are. Public opinion polling shows that 7 in 10 Americans consistently say they believe abortion access should be legal.
That is why Sierra Club has stood in solidarity with Planned Parenthood after the smear campaign this summer, participating in rallies, sending cards to our clinics and lending our voice on social media. It’s also why we support Colorado’s IUD program. We understand that women’s rights and environmental justice go hand in hand, that to win the fight against environmental injustice we need to make sure all are able to lead healthy lives, and universal access to voluntary family planning and health services for women is critical to that goal.
We also know that access to reproductive health and rights is not the only challenge women face. Of the 26 million people displaced by climate disruption since 2010, 20 million are women. When Hurricane Katrina hit, more women in the region were likely to be living in poverty and less involved in disaster response planning. This results in limited resources to escape natural disaster and response plans that don’t reach those women. As a result, reports of gender-based violence tripled, and women, living in public housing faced some of the biggest hurdles after the storm -- few had cars, and when the city flooded after the levees broke, women who could escape their homes were then stranded around the city.
We can improve individual and community health by promoting and finding support for gender equality. Policies must be put in place that support and empower women. Policies that increase access to reproductive rights and healthcare, education and economic opportunity will help girls and women adapt to the immediate effects of climate disruption by being healthier, stronger, and better prepared to adapt to climate disruption.
Reproductive rights are just that: rights. They aren’t a privilege meant only for those who can afford them. For too long, women have been denied their reproductive rights -- it’s time to build on the legacy that Roe v. Wade built 43 years ago to change that.