The Quickie: Mexico's Supreme Court Decriminalized Abortion, Access Is The Next Hurdle
For Immediate Release: Oct. 10, 2023
Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.
In today’s Quickie: After Mexico’s abortion decriminalization, access remains an issue; and military families continue to bear the brunt of anti-abortion promotions blockade.
MEXICO’S SUPREME COURT DECRIMINALIZED ABORTION, ACCESS IS THE NEXT HURDLE: Planned Parenthood Global, the international arm of PPFA works in ten focus countries throughout Africa and Latin America—one of which is Mexico. On Sep. 6, the fight for reproductive justice in Mexico experienced a big win: The country’s supreme court ruled that the federal criminal penalties for abortion were unconstitutional, effectively decriminalizing abortion nationwide. The ruling was cause for celebration within and outside Mexico, and for good reason. But Mexico’s experience also provides an important window into the chapter after decriminalization—and all the structural and social changes that need to happen to make it a true victory.
“This is a fantastic example of why it's so important to work as a locally led and globally connected movement,” said Lori Adelman, Acting Executive Director, Planned Parenthood Global. “What happens in one area affects us all. Our colleagues and partners in Mexico and throughout Latin America have been diligently working for decades towards this outcome and we celebrate with them on this win. We are so proud of our partner GIRE (Grupo de Información para la Reproducción Elegida) who led in this litigation along with brave local organizations, and will continue our work with civil society groups in Southern Mexico such as UNASSE and Gobernanza to ensure that these new rulings are implemented at the state level."
Read more from Slate here.
MILITARY FAMILIES DETAIL CONSEQUENCES OF CONTINUED BLOCKADE ON MILITARY PROMOTIONS FROM SENATOR TUBERVILLE: New reporting from the 19th* highlights the specific and direct consequences of Senator Tuberville's multi-month blockade on military promotions because of the Department of Defense’s support for servicemembers and their families who are traveling for abortion care. As Mariel Padilla reports, “These military holds have a cascading effect, impacting far more than the individuals whose promotions are being held up. When high-level officers cannot assume command, everyone under those commands is also put in limbo: They can’t get their pay raises, can’t move to new stations and can’t make decisions about their families’ lives.”
But for many families, it’s personal. As Jessi, a military spouse explains, her husband’s career is stalled out right now through no fault of his own – and the consequences on their family are serious. Padilla reports that “Jessi, her husband and their two sons moved to a new state in January 2020, [and] they’ve already relocated once to find cheaper rent…Jessi said their financial situation has gotten so tight that her 9- and 12-year-old sons cannot afford to participate in school sports. She is actively applying for substitute teaching positions.”
Read more from the 19th* here