Article Summary –
Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as a key advocate for reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago. Her stance on reproductive freedom has been shaped by her time as California’s attorney general, her term as a US Senator, and her personal experience as a woman of color. In her role, she has campaigned extensively for reproductive rights, warning of the broader implications of the court’s ruling, and highlighting the potential risks of a second Trump term in power.
Following the US Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade two years ago, Vice President Kamala Harris has established herself as a powerful advocate for reproductive rights.
With the termination of the federal right to an abortion after the Supreme Court’s decision, women and reproductive rights supporters experienced a mix of anger, despair, and renewed drive.
Since this ruling, Democrats have reinforced their commitment to defending abortion rights in multiple states and restoring Roe‘s protections. Conversely, numerous conservative leaders have used the reversal of Roe to push for more severe restrictions on reproductive healthcare.
Vice President Kamala Harris has seized the reignited struggle for reproductive liberty and access to abortion as a chance to demonstrate her leadership, emerging as the Biden administration’s most outspoken proponent of reproductive rights.
Harris’ Background Strengthens Her Advocacy for Reproductive Rights
Harris’ staunch defense of reproductive freedom has been years in the making.
As California’s attorney general, she was among the attorneys general from 14 states who petitioned the US Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling that drastically curtailed abortion access in Texas.
“Every woman has the right to make informed choices about her health and well-being,” Harris stated in 2016. She urged the Supreme Court to reverse the Fifth Circuit ruling, citing its undermining of public health and a woman’s right to choose.
Furthermore, during her tenure as a US Senator from 2017 to 2020, Harris opposed a proposed amendment to ban federal funding for abortion services.
Her multiracial background and status as the first female vice president also inform her perspectives, especially given that challenges to reproductive and maternal healthcare disproportionately impact women of color.
Following the court’s overturning of Roe, Harris swiftly assumed the role of the administration’s primary spokesperson on reproductive rights.
“Millions of women in America will go to bed tonight without access to the healthcare and reproductive care that they had this morning; without access to the same healthcare or reproductive healthcare that their mothers and grandmothers had for 50 years,” Harris expressed in Illinois on the day Roe was overturned.
She was quick to express concerns about the broader implications of the court’s ruling, which she said jeopardized America’s “fundamental principle about the importance of liberty” and could extend to other personal freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution.
A White House statement reported that in the months following Roe‘s reversal, Harris advocated for reproductive rights, holding over 50 convenings in at least 16 states and involving hundreds of state legislators, state attorneys general, healthcare providers, faith leaders, students, and advocates in the fight for reproductive rights.
National Tour by Harris Underscores Threat of Second Trump Term
The approaching 2024 presidential election sees Harris’ outspoken advocacy for abortion rights reinforcing the Biden administration’s position. While President Joe Biden has voiced his support for reinstating Roe, Harris’ first-hand experiences lend extra credibility to the ticket.
With far-right groups like the Heritage Foundation and some conservative lawmakers targeting everything from in-vitro fertilization (IVF) access to birth control since Roe‘s reversal, Harris has broadened her public appearances nationwide to address reproductive rights.
In December 2023, Harris announced her “Fight For Reproductive Freedoms” tour, which began this year on the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade and has seen her address reproductive freedom and extreme abortion bans endorsed by Republicans across key states, including Arizona, Florida, and Nevada.
The tour aims to highlight the damage caused by these abortion bans and share the stories of those affected, according to a White House statement. Her role as a leading voice for reproductive rights helps her hold extremists accountable for proposing a national abortion ban, call on Congress to restore Roe‘s protections, and outline the Administration’s efforts to protect access to healthcare.
In March, Harris became the first sitting US president or vice president to visit an abortion clinic when she visited a Planned Parenthood facility in Minnesota.
During her appearances, Harris has also directly highlighted the stakes of a potential second Trump term.
“Donald Trump handpicked three members of the United States Supreme Court because he intended for them to overturn Roe. And as he intended, they did,” she told a crowd during an appearance in Florida in May. “Here’s what a second Trump term looks like: more bans, more suffering, less freedom.”
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