This is the first hearing for #ThePeoplesLawsuit, a challenge to the long-standing and burdensome Texas laws that restrict access to abortion care
WHO: Plaintiffs in Whole Woman’s Health Alliance v. Paxton
WHERE: U.S. District Court, 501 W 5th St, Austin, TX
WHEN: Monday, January 7 at 1:30 p.m.
AUSTIN — On Monday, a federal court in Austin will hear arguments on whether a challenge to Texas’ extreme restrictions on abortion care can move forward.
Plaintiffs in The People’s Lawsuit will argue before Judge Yeakel that the state’s three motions to dismiss this lawsuit are unfounded. The plaintiffs, including Whole Woman’s Health Alliance, the Afiya Center, Fund Texas Choice, Lilith Fund, Texas Equal Access Fund, West Fund, and Bhavik Kumar, M.D., M.P.H., are confident that their case will be successful in eroding barriers to abortion care for everyone in Texas.
The hearing is open to the public and advocates will be present to support the rights of all people seeking abortion care in Texas.
Background:
People seeking abortion care in Texas face an array of medically unnecessary requirements that are difficult, time-consuming, and costly to navigate — sometimes prohibitively so. These laws have been built up over time to chip away at the abortion right first recognized in Roe v. Wade more than four decades ago and reaffirmed just recently in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt. In both of those landmark cases, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down unconstitutional Texas laws that restricted access to abortion care, recognizing that the right to have an abortion is critical to the liberty, dignity, and equal status of anyone with the capacity to become pregnant. The healthcare providers and grassroots organizations bringing The People’s Lawsuit ask the court to follow that precedent.
The Plaintiffs are represented by the Lawyering Project and the Law Offices of Patrick J. O’Connell PLLC.
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Whole Woman’s Health Alliance Whole Woman’s Health Alliance works to strategically shift the stigma around abortion in the culture by fostering open and honest conversations, lifting up all communities and transforming the abortion care environment.
The Afiya Center’s Supporting Your Sistah Fund provides compassionate practical support using a Reproductive Justice framework. We want to ensure that Black women of color have the support they need to receive the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare which includes abortion access.
Fund Texas Choice helps Texans equitably access abortion through safe, confidential, and comprehensive travel services and practical support.
Lilith Fund, an abortion fund since 2001, provides direct financial assistance to people seeking abortion in the central and southern regions of Texas.
Texas Equal Access Fund provides funding to low-income people in the northern region of Texas who are seeking abortion and cannot afford it, while simultaneously working to end barriers to abortion access through community education and shifting the current culture toward reproductive justice.
The West Fund is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization affiliated with the National Network of Abortion Funds and based in El Paso, Texas, that works to make abortions accessible for all people.
