Interfaith Alliance Responds to SCOTUS Ruling on Emergency Care Access: “Reproductive Freedoms Are Religious Freedoms”

Interfaith Alliance Responds to SCOTUS Ruling on Emergency Care Access: “Reproductive Freedoms Are Religious Freedoms”

Interfaith Alliance, a national organization that advocates for inclusive democracy and healthy boundaries between religion and government, responded to today’s Supreme Court ruling in the case of Idaho and Moyle, et al. v. United States. The ruling should ensure for the time-being that pregnant Idahoans once again have access to emergency abortion care – but failed to expressly uphold the right to this vital care. As Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote in her dissenting opinion, “This court had a chance to bring clarity and certainty to this tragic situation, and we have squandered it.”

Interfaith Alliance has consistently challenged Christian nationalist attacks on reproductive rights, which have escalated following the overturning of Roe v. Wade – prioritizing an extreme ideology over saving lives. The group is deeply concerned by the Court’s failure to uphold reproductive rights, and by indications from the dissenting justices that they would give anti-abortion politicians the green light to ban even life-saving abortions and punish healthcare providers.

In a statement, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, President & CEO of Interfaith Alliance, said:

“As advocates for both reproductive rights and religious freedoms, we wanted to see the Supreme Court make absolutely clear that every pregnant person, no matter where they live, should be able to get the emergency care that they need – including abortions. States forcing doctors to deny reproductive care, even and especially in emergencies, is deeply cruel – and an affront to the constitutional guarantee that people of all faiths and beliefs should be free to make decisions about their own lives, informed by their values.

“While Christian nationalist anti-abortion groups like those behind this court case may use religion to justify their agenda, they absolutely do not speak for most people of faith in this country. Recent polling confirmed that majorities across most religious traditions say that abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

“Safeguarding access to safe and legal abortion is not only important for justice in health care but also for ensuring that no one religious group is allowed to impose their viewpoint on all Americans. That’s why a vast and diverse multi-faith movement across this country continues to mobilize in defense of reproductive rights wherever they are threatened – in the courts, in clinics and hospitals, at the ballot box and beyond. We know that this struggle is bigger than any one court case, and that other cases moving through the courts could soon be used to further target and restrict access to emergency care and safe abortions. Extremists will continue to pursue every avenue to undermine reproductive care – and we will continue to stand up to them every step of the way.” Interfaith Alliance works nationwide to uphold reproductive health access and justice for all through advocacy in federal and state legislatures, electoral mobilization around ballot measures, and the courts. The group proudly signed two amicus briefs in the recent Alliance for the Hippocratic Medicine et al. v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration case, where the court dismissed a lawsuit that sought to restrict access to the medicated abortion drug Mifepristone. The organization has championed multiple federal bills, including the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), which would create a federal right to abortion.