SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Arkansas legislators have drawn harsh criticism from women's rights groups after passing four new laws that would severely restrict abortion access. (Photo: Steve Rhodes/Flickr/cc)
Rights Groups Prepare for Fight Against Arkansas' Man-Approved Abortion Law
Law would require any woman seeking an abortion to get permission from the man who impregnated her
Jul 11, 2017
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in the American Civil Liberties Union's suit to block several new anti-reproductive rights laws that have passed in Arkansas, which would impose severe restrictions on women's abortion access in the state.
The group has joined with the Center for Reproductive Rights to keep the laws from going into effect, starting at the end of July.
"Instead of protecting women's health, Arkansas politicians have passed laws that defy decency and reason just to make it difficult or impossible for a woman to get an abortion," said Rita Sklar, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas. "They've created burdensome bureaucratic hurdles that invade patient privacy."
The Tissue Disposal Mandate, or H.B. 1566, will make it illegal for a woman to terminate a pregnancy without informing the man who impregnated her. During Arkansas' legislative session, the provision was added to the state's Final Disposition Rights Act of 2009, which mandates that family members must agree what to do with a loved one's body after a death. The law would apply to women who become pregnant in cases of rape as well as women who have consensual sex.
The law also states that any man or woman must be over the age of 18 in order to seek an abortion. In the case of a 17-year-old girl who is impregnated by an 18-year-old, for example, the decision would be entirely up to the male.
In addition to H.B. 1566, Arkansas recently passed laws banning a medically safe and effective abortion method known as dilation and evacuation; restricting access to abortion based on the sex of the fetus; and requiring doctors to preserve fetal tissue and notify police after performing abortions on anyone under the age of 16. The ACLU and Center for Reproductive Rights have strongly condemned the laws.
"Arkansas politicians have devised new and cruel ways to rob women of their right to safe and legal abortion this year," said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "The Center for Reproductive Rights will continue to use the full force of the law to ensure these rights are protected and respected for all women."
In 2015, the Institute for Women's Policy Research ranked Arkansas as one of the worst states for women's reproductive rights.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in the American Civil Liberties Union's suit to block several new anti-reproductive rights laws that have passed in Arkansas, which would impose severe restrictions on women's abortion access in the state.
The group has joined with the Center for Reproductive Rights to keep the laws from going into effect, starting at the end of July.
"Instead of protecting women's health, Arkansas politicians have passed laws that defy decency and reason just to make it difficult or impossible for a woman to get an abortion," said Rita Sklar, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas. "They've created burdensome bureaucratic hurdles that invade patient privacy."
The Tissue Disposal Mandate, or H.B. 1566, will make it illegal for a woman to terminate a pregnancy without informing the man who impregnated her. During Arkansas' legislative session, the provision was added to the state's Final Disposition Rights Act of 2009, which mandates that family members must agree what to do with a loved one's body after a death. The law would apply to women who become pregnant in cases of rape as well as women who have consensual sex.
The law also states that any man or woman must be over the age of 18 in order to seek an abortion. In the case of a 17-year-old girl who is impregnated by an 18-year-old, for example, the decision would be entirely up to the male.
In addition to H.B. 1566, Arkansas recently passed laws banning a medically safe and effective abortion method known as dilation and evacuation; restricting access to abortion based on the sex of the fetus; and requiring doctors to preserve fetal tissue and notify police after performing abortions on anyone under the age of 16. The ACLU and Center for Reproductive Rights have strongly condemned the laws.
"Arkansas politicians have devised new and cruel ways to rob women of their right to safe and legal abortion this year," said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "The Center for Reproductive Rights will continue to use the full force of the law to ensure these rights are protected and respected for all women."
In 2015, the Institute for Women's Policy Research ranked Arkansas as one of the worst states for women's reproductive rights.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in the American Civil Liberties Union's suit to block several new anti-reproductive rights laws that have passed in Arkansas, which would impose severe restrictions on women's abortion access in the state.
The group has joined with the Center for Reproductive Rights to keep the laws from going into effect, starting at the end of July.
"Instead of protecting women's health, Arkansas politicians have passed laws that defy decency and reason just to make it difficult or impossible for a woman to get an abortion," said Rita Sklar, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas. "They've created burdensome bureaucratic hurdles that invade patient privacy."
The Tissue Disposal Mandate, or H.B. 1566, will make it illegal for a woman to terminate a pregnancy without informing the man who impregnated her. During Arkansas' legislative session, the provision was added to the state's Final Disposition Rights Act of 2009, which mandates that family members must agree what to do with a loved one's body after a death. The law would apply to women who become pregnant in cases of rape as well as women who have consensual sex.
The law also states that any man or woman must be over the age of 18 in order to seek an abortion. In the case of a 17-year-old girl who is impregnated by an 18-year-old, for example, the decision would be entirely up to the male.
In addition to H.B. 1566, Arkansas recently passed laws banning a medically safe and effective abortion method known as dilation and evacuation; restricting access to abortion based on the sex of the fetus; and requiring doctors to preserve fetal tissue and notify police after performing abortions on anyone under the age of 16. The ACLU and Center for Reproductive Rights have strongly condemned the laws.
"Arkansas politicians have devised new and cruel ways to rob women of their right to safe and legal abortion this year," said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "The Center for Reproductive Rights will continue to use the full force of the law to ensure these rights are protected and respected for all women."
In 2015, the Institute for Women's Policy Research ranked Arkansas as one of the worst states for women's reproductive rights.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.