Last Friday, the Supreme Court issued a chilling decision overturning Roe, striking down a well-established precedent of 50 years, and for the first time ever, taking away a Constitutional right.  It will not be the last time.

This decision will have an immense and immensely negative impact on the bodily autonomy of women (as well as transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming people who can give birth), their right to seek and obtain affordable health care, and their ability to control their own reproductive systems.  At least 26 states have passed restrictive bans and criminalized the efforts of both individuals and doctors to administer the health care that is in the best interest of the patient and have even curtailed the right of the patient to make decisions in their own best interest (1). And now, both Mike Pence and Mitch McConnell are indicating that they will not rest until this ban is nationwide.

It goes without saying, but let us say it anyway, loudly and clearly:  this decision is deplorable and dangerously regressive for all Americans.

But this decision affects not only women, transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people and their health care providers, in no small part because what was overturned on Friday was not merely the right to abortion, but rather and arguably, more importantly, the right to privacy. Fundamentally what Roe affirmed was the finding first articulated in Griswold that although it is not explicitly stated in the Constitution, a right to privacy does exist in the penumbra of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments. That right to privacy is now very much in doubt.

Editorial: The Gay Agenda for 2022

by Martha McDevitt-Pugh, DA LGBTQ+ Global Caucus vice chair

The DAUK LGBTQ+ Caucus kicked off this election year with a discussion of “The Gay Agenda" for 2022.

During the webinar, we heard from Sam Alleman, LGBTQ+ Coalitions Director at the DNC, to hear about measures the Biden Administration has taken to advance protections for LGBTQ+ people. These efforts started with signing executive orders on LGBTQ+ rights within hours of taking the oath of office — including preventing and combating discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation and the whole-of-government initiative establishing efforts to advance equity and justice for communities who have been left behind, underserved, or discriminated against by federal policies, laws, and programs, including LGBTQ+ communities. They also included lifting the ban on transgender military service and providing Americans with same-sex partners with an equal pathway to registering their children born abroad as U.S. citizens.

I joined Alleman to speak about the state of play across the country — and the role each of us has to play in advancing LGBTQ+ rights ahead of the midterm elections. The event was moderated by Caroline Ruchonnet and organized by DAUK LGBTQ+ Caucus chair Austin Allaire.

Republican state legislatures across the country have been targeting some of society’s most vulnerable — LGBTQ+ youth. Nearly 240 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been filed in the first three months of 2022 alone, half of them targeting transgender people. From Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill to Iowa’s new anti-trans sports law, we are seeing Republicans enact a hateful, bigoted agenda which jeopardizes the hard-won progress of the LGBTQ+ community.

LGBTQ+ issues are expected to be highlighted throughout the 2022 election cycle, making it critical that Democrats use the opportunity to speak to the issues. Relational organizing will be more important than ever — checking in with friends and family to find out if they’re registered and ready to vote.

The panel noted that getting out the vote in the 2022 midterms is as important as it was in 2018 and 2020, when Democrats took power in the House, Senate and won the presidency. With Democrats Abroad mobilizing voters in all 50 states, DA is a good partner for the DNC and the DNC LGBTQ Caucus, to bring attention to local and state issues while encouraging Americans overseas to vote. U.S. democracy itself is at stake.

If you missed it, you can watch the event here.

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