Reproductive Health Rights, and Justice Organizations Call on Congress to Pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act

Washington, D.C. — Today, Representative Terri Sewell (D-AL-07) re-introduced the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. This legislation will restore and modernize the Voting Rights Act by restoring the provision that blocks discriminatory voting policies before they’re enacted and puts a transparent process in place for protecting the freedom to vote. Over a dozen reproductive health, rights, and justice organizations highlighted the intersection of voting rights and reproductive rights:

“The right to vote and the freedom to control our own decisions, bodies, and lives are inextricably linked,” the groups said. “Anti-abortion rights politicians use voter suppression tactics to control our lives, bodies, and personal health care decisions. Nearly 80% of Americans agree that reproductive health decisions, including abortion, should be between patients and their doctors. But anti-democratic policies embolden out-of-touch politicians to ban abortion despite the needs of their constituents. These attacks disproportionately harm people of color, women, LGBTQ+ people, and people with low incomes. And the impact is evident in the racist policies that permeate our workplaces, schools, criminal justice and health care systems — and at the federal and state level.

“Congress must act to protect our freedoms. The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act is an essential step towards protecting the sacred right to vote, defending abortion rights, and saving our democracy.” 

Groups signing on to this statement include:

Center for Reproductive Rights  
Guttmacher Institute
In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda
NARAL Pro-Choice America
National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
National Council of Jewish Women
National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association
National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women’s Law Center
Physicians for Reproductive Health
Planned Parenthood Action Fund
URGE: Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity

Signers of this statement include 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations. In accordance with federal law, 501(c)(3) are charities that do not support or endorse any political candidates or otherwise intervene in candidate elections.

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Planned Parenthood Action Fund is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The Action Fund engages in educational, advocacy, and limited electoral activity, including grassroots organizing, legislative advocacy, and voter education.