The announcement that Planned Parenthood, along with other organizations, filed a lawsuit against the state of North Carolina due to the state’s law banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy has caused a favorable response among many in the Chapel Hill community.
The lawsuit was filed in conjunction with similar cases in Missouri and Alaska, which also have laws that strictly regulate a woman’s right to an abortion.
Justine Orlovsky-Schnitzler, a senior majoring in history and gender studies who is also a UNC campus leader for NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina, is quite enthusiastic about the lawsuit.
“I am fully supportive of the efforts,” Orlovsky-Schnitzler said. “The point of fetal viability is 24 weeks. It is pretty unconstitutional for the state to then to make a limit for 20 weeks.”
While Orlovsky-Schnitzler believes this is a positive action for female bodily autonomy, she understands that hurdles still lay ahead of her organization’s goal.
“Since Roe v. Wade was passed, we have had to face ongoing restrictions each and every year,” Orlovsky-Schnitzler said. “However, I have hope that North Carolina will begin to go in the right direction now. As long as activists keep at it, we will not face a serious fallback.”
The purpose of NARAL is to strongly advocate for safe, legal and protected reproductive decisions. The hope of the organization is for an individual to have easy access for reproductive health care without any barriers.
Sarah Hogg, the advocacy and organizing manager for NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina, strongly agrees with the activism associated with these lawsuits.
“I think that the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights are doing something really important,” Hogg says. “I think it has the potential to be really great, and it can really set up precedent for other states.”
