Statement from REPRO Rising Virginia Executive Director on Repeal of Roe v. Wade

Alexandra, VA- Tarina Keene, Executive Director of REPRO Rising Virginia – the Commonwealth’s leading reproductive rights organization – issued the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and Governor Youngkin’s just-released call for additional restrictions on abortion in Virginia.

“Today’s Supreme Court decision is cruel, dangerous, and devastating. The right to abortion has always been about control – who has the power to make personal decisions about our bodies, our lives, our families, and our futures. Today, six unelected justices took that power away from millions of Americans.

“I want to be clear that abortion is still legal in Virginia. But Governor Youngkin and his colleagues have already signaled they will stop at nothing to ban abortion and interfere in Virignians’ personal medical decisions. At REPRO Rising Virginia, we stand with the 77 percent of Virginia voters who believe that personal pregnancy decisions should be made by pregnant people, NOT politicians. We will not allow Governor Youngkin – or his handcrafted working group of extremist politicians – to take these rights away from us.

“REPRO Rising has been on the front lines of this battle in Virginia for 20 years. We have been preparing for this day – and we are ready to fight. Now more than ever, we must be loud in our support for Virginians who have abortions and the providers who provide critical, life-saving care every single day.”

Although Virginia will not immediately criminalize abortion after the fall of Roe v. Wade – unlike 13 states with “trigger bans” – advocates expect significant barriers to access as thousands of out-of-state patients travel to Virginia for care. Polling demonstrates that Virginians understand this sweeping impact, with half (48%) of all voters saying they will be personally impacted if the US Supreme Court decides to eliminate the right to an abortion. 40% of Virginia voters say that the overturning of Roe v. Wade will affect their loved ones.