“How dare he!” said Democratic U.S. Vice President Kamala during a “Fight for Reproductive Freedom” tour in Wisconsin on Jan. 22, in reference to former U.S. President and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. “He’s proud to have terminated abortion rights,” Harris said, referencing when Trump said he was proud to have overturned Roe Vs. Wade. Indeed, Trump has bragged about how during his presidency, he appointed three Supreme Court justices, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, who made the repeal of the right to abortion access under Roe Vs. Wade, possible.

 

As Rolling Stone reported, the U.S. Supreme Court stripped Americans of their right to abortion access in their 2022 Dobbs Vs. Jackson decision, and the ruling triggered a chain of state-level abortion bans, and a widespread effort by Republican lawmakers to criminalize women seeking comprehensive access to reproductive health. The Guardian reported how the decision delivered Republicans one of their most significant policy victories in a generation.

 

The vice president was taking to the stage on the 51^st anniversary of Roe Vs. Wade, which was passed in 1973, when she made the remarks. Since Roe Vs. Wade was overturned in June 2022, 21 states have established full or partial abortion bans, and abortion rights have remained at the core of political debate and a key issue with voters.

 

The Biden-Harris campaign kicked into high gear earlier this year and hopes the issue of abortion access will drive people, particularly women, to the polls this November. At an abortion rally in Virginia, also in January, Harris said, “If Congress passes a national abortion ban, President Biden will veto it,” while on his official Instagram page on April 2, Biden said, “Donald Trump doesn’t trust women!” The president has said he is running to make Roe Vs. Wade the law of the land again, and this is evidenced by his efforts with the Restore Roe Act.

 

This year will also be the first year that The New York Equal Protection of Law Amendment will appear on the ballet in New York. The New York State constitution amendment would prohibit a person’s rights, including reproductive rights, from being denied based on that person’s ethnicity, national origin, age, pregnancy status, disability including sexual orientation, gender identity, among others.

 

According to the New York Abortion Access Hub, there are two types of abortion: medical and surgical. A medical abortion involves taking pills to terminate a pregnancy, whereas surgical involves undergoing surgery. In New York State, you can get an abortion within 24 weeks of pregnancy. After 24 weeks, you can still get an abortion if your health or pregnancy is at risk, but this is not the case in 26 other states, including Texas, Florida, Utah, North and South Dakota.

 

Emergency contraception prevents pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of having unprotected sex. With abortion rights at risk across the country, the demand and sale of Plan B medication may also become an issue for national lawmakers.

 

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously struck down legal challenges to the abortion pill, mifepristone, by pro-life advocates. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled the group lacked legal standing to challenge the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s regulation of mifepristone, preserving access to the medication nationwide. The president said at the time the decision “does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.”

 

Meanwhile, for unknown reasons, signs of less access to abortion in The Bronx became apparent in March with the seemingly temporary yet abrupt shutdown of the Bronx Abortion GYN Services, located on 2070 Eastchester Avenue in Morris Park, even as other clinics, including Planned Parenthood located at the Bronx Center, and the Morrisania Sexual Health Clinic in Morrisania, remained open.

 

The Bronx Abortion clinic was established in 1969, around the time New York legalized abortion, but temporarily shut its doors in March, as reported by News 12 The Bronx. No explanation was given for the closure and no reason has been listed on its website or voicemail. Norwood News reached out to both State and City health departments to ask for the reason for the closure. We will share any updates we receive.

 

The clinic was one of the busiest in the borough, offering walk-in Saturday services. Efforts to contact the clinic itself both via e-mail and by phone were unsuccessful. The clinic had previously been under attack by anti-abortion groups like Forty Days of Life, who had held vigils outside it on different occasions. Pro-choice campaigners had said these were intimidating for those accessing the clinic, as reported.

 

After its closure, pharmacy retail chains like CVS and Walgreens starting selling mifepristone with a prescription. We reached out to other organizations like Planned Parenthood-The Bronx Center, and Callen-Lorde for comment on he matter but did not receive an immediate response.

 

When also contacted for comment on the issue, Dr. Gloria Pope, chief program officer at Destination Tomorrow, said, “A lot of our rights are at risk.” In reference to reproductive rights and the New York Equal Protection Law Amendment (2024), Pope added, “That is why we’re being so clear around ensuring that our community show up to vote.”

 

Pope went on to talk about what the organization plans to do in terms of abortion care for Bronxites, saying, “We are continuing to do everything that we do. We continue to canvas these streets. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, our agency makes sure our community is hitting the pavement to register [people] to vote.”

 

With abortion rights being such a hot topic in Election 2024, its future, along with reproductive rights, rests in the hands of either Biden or Trump. NY1 reported in June that according to a national Gallup poll, 41% of voters are pro-life, down from 47% in 2021. The outcome of the election could influence the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling regarding the overturning of Roe Vs. Wade, if Biden decides to pack the court with more liberal justices, changing American history.

 

According to Hallie Jackson, senior political correspondent for NBC News, abortion is an immobilizing issue for voters. “Reproductive rights are front and center in this campaign this November,” she said. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Harris said Trump was gas lighting the American people and attacking reproductive rights in this upcoming election. Abortion will be a critical issue on the ballot and one in eight voters say it is the most important issue to not only voters, but to women.

 

“We trust women,” Harris said. “We trust women to make decisions on their own bodies. We trust women to know what is in their best interest, and women trust us to fight and protect their own fundamental freedom. We are winning!”

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.