Abortion is Healthcare
Our work focuses on a range of issues, including protecting access to affordable contraception, protecting a person's ability to make personal, private decisions about pregnancy and abortion, and fighting pregnancy discrimination.
Abortion Access in the Courts
Presently, abortion is legal in South Carolina until 20 weeks. On January 5, 2023, the South Carolina state Supreme Court ruled in Planned Parenthood South Atlantic v South Carolina that the 6-week ban on abortion violated the right to privacy protected by the state constitution and struck it down.
On November 18, 2022, abortion opponents filed a federal lawsuit (Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration or Medication Abortion Ban Case) to ask the court to force the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to withdraw the approval of mifepristone. Ending access to mifepristone could result in banning medication abortion nationwide, which accounts for most abortions.
At the State House
A slate of bills were filed at the State House at the start of the 2023 legislative session aimed at restricting or criminalizing abortion. The bills include total abortion bans with limited exceptions, a personhood bill that would grant full legal rights to fertilized eggs, and a bill that has received national attention which would make people who have abortions eligible to receive the death penalty.
We continue to work in partnership with reproductive rights-focused partners to advocate for the advancement of reproductive rights including the decriminalization of self-managed abortion and resist harmful anti-abortion legislation introduced by extremist lawmakers.
In the Community
ACLU of South Carolina works with partners who are leading the fight to protect and expand reproductive rights in the Palmetto State and to educate and mobilize citizen advocates around the state. Partners include:
Planned Parenthood South Atlantic
Womens Rights Empowerment Network (WREN)
