News & Commentary

As the Supreme Court nears a ruling that could allow abortion to be criminalized by politicians, privacy activists and lawmakers must shift our approach in the states.

This is a perilous moment for our rights, but there are still ways to take action to support and protect abortion rights

Brigitte Amiri, deputy director of the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Project, breaks down what you should keep in mind in the wake of the leaked draft.

These proposals are designed to undermine our civil rights, legalize discrimination against selected groups of South Carolinians, and deny rights guaranteed under the South Carolina and U.S. Constitutions.

Recently, the South Carolina House unanimously passed a bill that would allow two weeks of early voting. If this bill passes, it would expand the opportunity for working people to be able to vote, and allow South Carolinians to vote at the polls on Saturday.

In partnership with We Testify, we are launching a storytelling series to spotlight abortion stories from five storytellers who share one thing in common: the liberation they experienced as a result of their abortion.

Last week, South Carolina Senators voted unanimously to advance legislation seeking to limit the types of restraints used on pregnant people who are incarcerated and virtually abolish the practice of shackling people during labor, childbirth, and postpartum recovery. The legislation will return to the House of Representatives with a new amendment which would further expand protections for pregnant incarcerated people.If passed as amended, South Carolina’s prisons, jails, and work camps would be required to provide access to adequate nutrition and a bottom bunk and would be prohibited from holding pregnant incarcerated people in solitary confinement under most circumstances. The amendment also requires prisons, jails, and work camps to ensure the availability of menstrual hygiene products for all people under their care with an active menstrual cycle and mandates that these products be made available at no cost to those who cannot afford to pay. Additionally, the Department of Corrections would be required to authorize weekly contact visits between incarcerated people with low or minimum-security classifications and their children.The practice of shackling incarcerated people while they are pregnant, in labor, giving birth, and recovering from birth has been opposed by the nation’s leading experts in maternal, fetal, and child healthcare, including the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the American Medical Association, and the American Public Health Association. Additionally, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the American Correctional Association have all adopted policies to limit the use of shackles on pregnant people who are incarcerated. Across South Carolina, criminal justice and reproductive health advocates have come together to support this legislation. The organizations include the ACLU of South Carolina; ANSWER Coalition; the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN); the South Carolina Perinatal Association; Justice Carolina; and the Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network.We are thrilled to be one step closer to ending the cruel and inhumane practice of shackling incarcerated people during labor, childbirth, and postpartum recovery and we urge the South Carolina House of Representatives to pass this legislation as amended and greatly increase the likelihood of positive outcomes for parents and their newborn children.  

Our state is hazardous to women's health. An extreme or alarmist statement? Not really.