The Arizona state Supreme Court
just ruled that
a law from 1864 banning abortion is still active and enforceable.The ban dates from the Civil War era, 48 years before Arizona even gained statehood in the U.S. For decades, this antiquated law had been irrelevant since the
Roe vs.
Wade decision began protecting the right to an abortion nationwide in 1973. But now, with
Roe gone, old laws are resurfacing.
And now this 160-year-old abortion ban is resurfacing like a ghost from hell to plague women and pregnant people in the state. Sign the petition to demand the Arizona state legislature finally do what it should have done years ago and officially repeal this misogynistic law from the 1800s!Since lawmakers in Arizona never previously voted to repeal this frighteningly old law, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that "there is no provision in federal or state law prohibiting" the abortion ban from going back into effect.
Under the old ban, abortion is illegal beginning at the moment of conception - meaning it is
essentially a total abortion ban, without even a small window of time for the person affected to intervene.
This piece of legislation listed abortion as a felony offense that can land pregnant people and doctors in prison for up to five years. While it includes an exception for life-or-death medical emergencies to save the pregnant person's life, it does not include any exception for victims of rape or incest.
According to the state's Supreme Court, the ban from 1864 will go back into effect in 14 days, like a reanimated zombie.
This is what the Republican party wants life in the United States to go back to: living under laws from the Civil War era, controlling and monitoring women's bodies, forcing people to play host to fetuses - even those conceived through violence and abuse.This is an extreme level of cruelty, and we must not stand for it. Voice your anger and demand the Arizona state lawmakers finally repeal the near-total abortion ban from 1864! Sign the petition!