Marking 43 Years of Roe v. Wade
Senator Mazie K. Hirono took to the Senate floor to mark the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a landmark Supreme Court decision that affirmed a woman’s right to access abortion care. Senator Hirono acknowledged the many challenges that women still face when accessing reproductive care, and called for the Supreme Court to continue to protect a woman’s right to choose and access a full range of health care services.
From Senator Hirono’s remarks:
“This decision enabled women to gain control over their own bodies, and in turn, their futures. If the government interfered in other patient-doctor decisions the way that state and federal governments have interfered with women’s reproductive rights, there would be a national uproar.
“Why is it different when we talk about a woman’s body as opposed to a man’s? Can you imagine if states passed laws restricting fundamental decisions about a man’s medical care? Why is it that women have to defend deeply personal decisions over our own bodies in court and in legislatures?
“I recognize that there are deeply held beliefs by good people on both sides of this issue. Which is why the right to choose should be left to the individual woman and her doctor.”
Senator Hirono delivers a speech on the Senate floor on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade
