By Nicole Brener-Schmitz, NARAL Pro-Choice America Political Director
With the midterm election only 3 days away, the people of New Mexico have an important decision to make: who will bring together state leaders to create the best policies for New Mexicans? It is the duty of state leaders to work with their colleagues in the New Mexico House and Senate to pass legislation with the people and their rights in mind.
One area of utmost importance is protecting a woman’s ability to make the best choices about her own reproductive health, including the right to have an abortion. The vast majority of Americans agree. This summer the Wall Street Journal and NBC released a poll that showed that Roe v. Wade is more popular than ever, with 71% of Americans supporting keeping Roe intact and keeping abortion legal. Yet, despite overwhelming support for Roe, the new composition of the Supreme Court threatens its existence and protections.
During the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, we learned that Kavanaugh wants to criminalize abortion and punish women and questions whether Roe is “settled law.” As someone who believes we should respect that a woman needs to make her own important life decisions, free from political interference, this terrifies me. History shows us that when abortion is criminalized, the number of abortions do not actually go down, but the number of deaths and injuries to women go up.
Women in New Mexico need to pay particular attention to the status of Roe because there is a state law still on the books that criminalizes abortion. In 1969, New Mexico state passed a law that would criminalize any person who administers an abortion unless the woman would be in physical or mental harm, the child would have adverse birth defects, or in the case of incest or rape. If the Supreme Court were to overturn Roe or further limit its protections, this state law could go into effect.
The organization I work for, NARAL Pro-Choice America, and our members call on the New Mexico state government to repeal this law and ensure that women are able to choose how, when and with whom they want to start or grow a family.
To ensure women in New Mexico are able to obtain safe and legal abortion care, voters need to elect Michelle Lujan Grisham as Governor. She is a pro-choice leader with the backing of groups such as NARAL, EMILY’s List and Planned Parenthood Action Fund. She has stood up for women during her career as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives by repeatedly voting to protect a women’s right to safe and legal abortion care and opposing legislation that would limit reproductive freedom. She has done it in Congress and will do it once again as Governor.
Without an advocate for women’s rights like Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico will be unable to reverse the 1969 law that criminalizes abortion and punishes women. At the end of the day, this is a question about equality. We need to ask ourselves: do we trust our daughters, sisters, aunts, and mothers enough to believe they have the right to make the best decisions for themselves and their families?
New Mexico deserves a fighter like Lujan Grisham who will work to repeal outdated laws and support women and their fundamental freedoms.
