WS Chronicle

Democrats applaud U.S. Supreme Court abortion decision

To the Editor:

The United States Supreme Court has reached a decision to repeal Texas’s proposed bill that would require women’s health clinics to adhere to stricter regulations, on the grounds that it would severely restrict women’s access to health care. Congresswoman Alma Adams has called this ruling a “victory for women nationwide.” The bill in question would have made it necessary for doctors to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the clinic and for the clinics themselves to have elaborate, expensive, hospital grade equipment. These requirements would have shut down an estimated 75 percent of Texas’s women’s health clinics, which are already held to very high safety

standards. As a result, almost 1 million women in Texas would not live within 250 miles of an abortion clinic. The court majority argued that the bill would serve only to prevent women from accessing safe care, and Justice Ginsburg went as far as to say that it was “beyond rational belief that [the bill] could genuinely protect the health of women.”The case was determined by a 5-3 majority, with Justice Kennedy, the only swing vote on abortion issues, joining liberal justices in the decision to repeal the bill. This shows that evenwith Republicans’ refusal to appoint President Obama’s selected replacement for the late JusticeScalia, Democrats can still win a majority on women’s health issues. This case is also a significant one for women’s health because it shows that the restriction of a woman’s access to an abortion without probable cause is unconstitutional. Strict abortion regulations across the country and even in North Carolina may come under scrutiny in light of this ruling. The state’s law that requires a woman to submit ultrasounds to the health department before an abortion can be performed is a step toward Texas-like abortion regulation, and if North Carolina legislators try to pass anything more extreme, they may be constitutionally unable to do so.The Forsyth County Democratic Party supports the right of all women to choose, and this includes supporting the clinics that provide abortions and give women access to carry out their choice. The FCDP maintains that the limitation of a woman’s right of access to health services and programs is unconstitutional and detrimental to women’s health. The party hopes that the Supreme Court will continue to uphold women’s health for the sake of women and girls across the country and in North Carolina.

Forsyth County Democratic Party

Winston-Salem

Civil Rights Act turns 52 amid regression

To the Editor:

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz joined DNC Vice Chair for Voter Protection and Expansion Donna Brazile and DNC Black Caucus Chair Virgie Rollins to issue the following joint statement:

“As Americans across the country prepared to celebrate our independence this past holiday weekend, we also celebrated the 52nd anniversary of the Civil Rights Act – landmark legislation that carried our nation one step closer to fully realizing the profound promise in our Declaration of Independence that we are all created equal. The law expanded voting rights, made discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin illegal, and protected the rights of all Americans to use public facilities, and to access public education.

The passage of the Civil Rights Act, which was called for by President John F. Kennedy and signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, truly belongs to the great multitude of courageous civil rights leaders, activists, protesters, and warriors for justice who fought tirelessly through decades of oppression, racism, segregation, discrimination and mistreatment. These American men and women endured unthinkable adversity, sometimes even sacrificing their lives in the struggle, to forge a more perfect union.

“Although they carried our nation a long way, we can best honor their legacy by recognizing that we still have much farther to go. In too many states, conservative politicians are working to roll back the right to vote with restrictive voter ID laws, cut backs in early voting and same-day registration, and reductions in poll locations, especially in minority districts. Democrats are committed to standing strong against those who seek to win elected office by stripping certain groups of Americans their most basic right – the right to vote.

“The assault on voting rights is a reminder that the deep scars of our past have yet to fully heal, and the promise of true equality has yet to be fully attained. So we must remain vigilant in defending their progress, and rededicate ourselves to the cause of moving forward every day. In too many communities, hardworking families are still struggling to get ahead. And in far too many cases, names like Sandra Bland, Freddie Gray, Trayvon Martin, and others who hauntingly remind us that the struggle for economic and racial justice continues, and that we have a duty to continue to tell their stories.

“Democrats believe our people are our greatest strength, and we will continue to fight to expand opportunity for all Americans, regardless of their race, and to build an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. We must elect a Democrat as our next president to keep our nation’s march of progress moving forward.”

Democratic National Committee

Washington, D.C.

HB 2 revisions fail to provide meaningful changes to law

To the Editor:

Governor McCrory and legislative Republicans just showed their true priorities, putting their divisive partisan social agenda ahead of North Carolina’s economy.

The governor failed to ever push for meaningful changes to his dis-criminatory law, instead  sacrificing thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars.

It’s clear that middle class families need new leadership to put jobs and the economy first.

Kimberly Reynolds

N.C.Democratic Party Executive Director

Raleigh