Advocates for Youth and We Testify file landmark Abortion Stories Brief spotlighting abortion stories and centering abortion storytellers

Washington, DC –  Today, Advocates for Youth and We Testify filed a landmark Supreme Court amicus brief comprised of the narratives of people who have had abortions, and joined by over 6,600 people who have had abortions, representing all 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  

Read the Amicus and Amicus Appendix

The “Abortion Stories Brief” is the largest collection of stories and signatures from abortion storytellers ever collected, sharing 25 individual stories and with contributions from six thousand six hundred forty-one (6,641). Too often, laws restricting abortion care are passed without any input from people who have actually needed to end their pregnancies. 

Today, people who’ve had abortions are telling the Supreme Court:
We deserve access to abortion care—free of shame, stigma, and misinformation.

• We deserve access to abortion care—free of shame, stigma, and misinformation.
• We deserve abortion experiences centered in love and support.
• We won’t remain silent as this Court and legislators around the country try to gut abortion access.

This amicus was filed by Susman Godfrey LLP for Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case which the Supreme Court is expected to hear in November determining whether Mississippi and other states can ban abortion as early as 15 weeks. The outcome of this case could drastically change abortion laws across the country, unleashing even more restrictions than the thousands we’ve already faced over the past decade.

Said Renee Bracey Sherman, Founder & Executive Director, We Testify:

“We Testify is proud to submit this historic amicus brief with our friends at Advocates for Youth from all of us who’ve had abortions to the Supreme Court of the United States. It’s high time that the Supreme Court Justices actually listen to those it claims to stand up for: the people. We deserve to have our day in court and our voices heard. The Justices must listen to us and understand the impact that the racist, onerous, and medically inaccurate restrictions to abortion already have on our lives. The stories in the brief are representative of our experiences, particularly those of Black, indigenous, and other people of color, queer and trans people, immigrants, disabled people, and young people: the majority of people who have abortions. We deserve to be heard. As a signatory on the brief, I was in awe at how many people who’ve had abortions—just like me—wanted to speak out and share our stories with the Supreme Court. Seeing my name alongside the name of my mother, aunt, cousins, We Testify storytellers, and friends simply reminds us that our lives and families are shaped by abortion and everyone loves someone who had an abortion.”

Said Debra Hauser, President, Advocates for Youth:

“This Supreme Court needs to hear from people who have had abortions – people like me.  No one understands the obstacles, legal barriers, and harmful stigma we face better than us. No one knows the important role abortion care has played in our lives better than us.  That’s why I joined the thousands of people who signed the brief – many of us young people or people who needed abortion care when we were young. We’re not going to sit back and do nothing while access to abortion in this country is dismantled. I urge the Supreme Court to let go of partisanship and make this decision based on what is best for people facing abortion decisions.”

 

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Advocates for Youth is a 501(c)3 organization that champions efforts that help young people make informed decisions about their reproductive and sexual health. Advocates boldly advocates for a more positive and realistic approach to adolescent sexual health, focusing its work on young people ages 14-25 in the U.S. and around the globe. 

We Testify is an organization dedicated to the leadership and representation of people who have abortions, increasing the spectrum of abortion storytellers in the public sphere, and shifting the way the media understands the context and complexity of accessing abortion care. We Testify invests in abortion storytellers to elevate their voices and expertise, particularly those of color, those from rural and conservative communities, those who are queer-identified, those with varying abilities and citizenship statuses, and those who needed support when navigating barriers while accessing abortion care.