Karrie Galloway: This is a red alert moment for abortion justice in Utah

On Oct. 2, 1,000 Utahns joined a nationwide movement to rally and march for abortion justice. We didn’t just come to listen – we came to be heard. We created posters, chose our favorite T-shirt, and donned our masks to spend several hours in the sun to represent our diverse communities and show our commitment to reproductive freedom and abortion justice.

It was incredibly heartening to see real people’s faces, albeit behind masks, committed to abortion access and gathered to hear first-hand stories about how abortion changes lives for the better.

As the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, sexual and reproductive health care, rights, and freedom for all Utahns is what I work for every day. I have dedicated the past 40 years of my life to this work, and I remember what it was like before Roe v. Wade protected the right to abortion in our country. I have seen the ways that Roe hasn’t been enough to protect this right from the politicians who have worked for decades to make abortion as difficult as possible to get.

Here in Utah and in many other states, politicians have systematically chipped away at abortion access. This includes forcing people to travel long distances, wait days between appointments, sit through stigmatizing, scripted presentations, pay out of pocket without insurance coverage, and make childcare difficult to get. They have passed abortion ban after abortion ban, in hopes that one of these cases would make it to the Supreme Court to challenge Roe v. Wade.

Now they have their chance. On Dec. 1, a case challenging Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban will be heard at the U.S. Supreme Court. This ruling will have far reaching consequences — potentially putting abortion care out of reach for millions of Americans — including Utahns. Because of the trigger ban passed in 2020 by the Utah Legislature, nearly all abortions would be illegal in Utah if Roe is overturned.

This is a red alert moment for abortion justice. Reproductive rights and access are critical to the quality of people’s lives and the overall quality of the communities we live in. If you care about reproductive freedom, you must get involved.

I was inspired by the diversity of people who showed up to march – young, old, and everyone in between. We heard from a wide range of speakers about the intersectionality of reproductive rights and reminded us that people of color, those with low-income, immigrants, and LGBTQ+ people are most impacted by lack of access to health care.

If you were there on that Saturday, whether in person or in spirit, thank you. But even if you didn’t march, you can still show up for reproductive freedom now.

One of the best ways? Talk about this issue with your family, friends, neighbors and elected officials. Remind them that reproductive health care decisions are deeply personal and should be protected. We must move beyond the slogans and judgment and focus on the real lives at stake.

Advocate for policies that support people’s whole lives, including better access to all types of health care provided by people our communities trust, insurance that covers our needs, and policies that support families and individuals to live their fullest lives.

Texans are already experiencing a post-Roe world; it is heartbreaking for me to think about what the women and families and health care providers in Texas are going through right now. I do not want to see that happen here.

Stand with me and the majority of Utahns who want safe, legal abortion protected. Now is the time for us to show up and fight or our communities. Now is the time to step back from politics and make room for compassion, empathy, and community care. We must push for bold solutions that ensure safe, stigma-free abortion is available, affordable, and accessible for anyone who needs it. Abortion justice can’t wait.

Karrie Galloway is the president & CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah. She lives in Salt Lake City.