ATLANTA – State Representative Regina Lewis-Ward (D-McDonough) today issued the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade:
“The landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding Roe v. Wade in 1973 created a pathway across the United States to give women access to safe, affordable reproductive health care. The loss of this fundamental human right creates a health crisis in communities of color and criminalizes women who travel across state lines for accessible, quality reproductive health care. The majority of Americans do not agree with this restrictive decision. This about-face cannot be final. We will have a future with options for safe reproductive health care.
“Today’s Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade reverses years of progress gained by women. Restrictions on reproductive care impact mostly women of color, those with low incomes and those living in rural areas. Together, as a country, we must continue the fight to achieve reproductive freedoms, full voting rights and access to quality health care. I recall when a friend became pregnant at an early age. She was faced with a tough decision of having to keep her baby or pray to have a successful delivery of a child that would have grown up in abject poverty. However, she was free to make that decision. No one should be criminalized for pregnancy outcomes, and the government should not have the right to involve itself within the decision of a woman’s body. It truly is a shame that my Republican colleagues have chosen to embody these very principles even as they rail against government interference, poverty within communities of color and Democrats not caring about life.”
“I am prepared to oppose any legislation which seeks to impose state level restrictions in conflict with women making decisions about their bodies and their future.”
Representative Regina Lewis-Ward represents the citizens of District 109, which includes portions of Henry, Newton and Rockdale counties. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2020 and currently serves on the Agriculture & Consumer Affairs, Banks & Banking and Interstate Cooperation committees.
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