OpEds

Not only did the overturning of Roe make the U.S. an outlier by rolling back abortion rights, it has the potential to send reverberations around the world. Despite the huge movement to liberalize abortion rights around the world, the decision could embolden opponents worldwide to take action to roll back that progress. Anti-abortion activists may not be the only ones—governments and politicians abroad seeking to restrict abortion rights could also use the U.S. as justification to restrict access to abortion in their own countries. Read More »

July 11 is World Population Day—a day designated annually by the United Nations that should prompt us, in the words of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, to “focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues.”

Examining population trends helps describe where we’ve been and suggests where we’re headed. Yet these facts about human existence on our planet also offer insights into how we got here—including a window into places where inequities exist and rights have been denied. Read More »

Texas Governor Greg Abbott waded into problematic territory when he called gender-affirming care for transgender minors “mutilation” and “child abuse.” His remarks generated lots of coverage and controversy, as he presumably knew they would. The irresponsible and incorrect use of the term “mutilation” takes attention away from the actual, serious problem of mutilation and cutting in the United States today.  Read More »

In the last week alone, anti-abortion laws moved forward in four states. Arizona and Kentucky voted to approve a 15-week abortion ban. Idaho’s governor signed into law a bill that bans abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy. A near total ban on abortion began making its way through Oklahoma’s legislature. They’re all part of a larger juggernaut rolling back abortion rights that doesn’t seem to be impeded by the legal consensus that Roe v. Wade is settled law. Read More »

While global attention is riveted on Ukraine, a potentially worse crisis is unfolding in Africa’s Sahel region, where Russia is taking advantage of instability. Read More »

Senate Republicans recently blocked passage of the Women’s Health Protection Act, a bill that would have protected the right to abortion free from medically unnecessary restrictions. The vote was held exactly six months after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Texas’ SB8 law, which bans abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy, to go into effect. At a stroke, SB8 stopped the people of Texas from exercising their right to basic reproductive health care, and effectively overturned Roe v. Wade for 1 in 10 women of reproductive age in the United States. Now, in the absence of a federal law protecting those rights, people in many other states may soon share the same predicament. Read More »

The future of Roe v. Wade is now in doubt as the 6-3 conservative majority Supreme Court signaled a willingness to roll back abortion rights. On Wednesday, the nine justices heard oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (JWHO), pertaining to a Mississippi law that would ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. This would be a direct challenge to Roe and nearly 50 years of precedent that holds that prior to fetal viability, the Constitution guarantees abortion rights. Should the court decide in Dobbs v. JWHO that some pre-viability bans are constitutional and/or overturn Roe, abortion rights could be left up to states. More than 36 million women—nearly half of women of childbearing age in the U.S.—as well as others who can become pregnant could lose access to abortion care.  Read More »

The shadow pandemic will have lasting, devastating impacts on women and girls. Child marriage permanently alters the course of a girl’s life, often halting her education, increasing her chances of experiencing domestic violence, robbing her of bodily autonomy, and putting her at risk for earlier pregnancies and maternal mortality. FGM/C can result in obstetric fistula, infertility, infection, complications during childbirth, painful sexual intercourse, depression, and anxiety.

Stopping the surge in violence against women and girls and preventing future harm is the responsibility of the global community Read More »

Congress now has a chance to strike down the global gag rule, also known as the Mexico City Policy. It bars organizations abroad that receive U.S. aid from performing abortion, counseling clients about it, or referring them to abortion services. It’s an imperialist policy that has hurt women and weakened health service delivery around the world for decades. Congress should seize the opportunity to get rid of it. Read More »

Anti-abortion activists are closer than ever to achieving their ultimate goal: overturning Roe v. Wade. This week, they celebrated the news that the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a major abortion case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (JWHO). The case concerns a Mississippi state law that would ban almost all abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy — well before a fetus is viable. With the Court’s new 6-3 conservative majority, the outcome could be devastating for abortion access. Read More »