Brookline’s Raul Fernandez Slams Draft Roe V. Wade Decision

BROOKLINE, MA — On Wednesday, former Brookline Select Board Vice-Chair and current State Representative candidate Raul Fernandez released a statement slamming the draft Supreme Court decision that lays out a legal case to overturn two key abortion decisions: Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

The draft, which was published by POLITICO Monday night, shows that the court is on the path toward rescinding abortion access, which would lead to it being outlawed in many states.

However, Massachusetts is one of several states with a state law protecting abortion access and tate lawmakers recently expanded access to the medical after a veto by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker. Now, many local lawmakers are taking to social media to voice their support of reproductive rights.

“The Supreme Court’s draft opinion is shameful and unacceptable,” Fernandez said. "It will cost lives, it will do the most harm to those already with the least access to abortion, and it represents a disgusting invasion of bodily autonomy and privacy. Forced birth is dystopian, and we need to use every resource at our disposal to fight this ruling.”

“We also need to make Massachusetts an abortion access sanctuary and remove the barriers to abortion access that still exist in our state,” he continued.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, more than a dozen states could ban abortion instantly if Roe v. Wade was overturned. Every state in New England, except New Hampshire, as well as New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware have similar state-level abortion protections, according to a Washington Post analysis.

“The ROE Act was a watershed piece of legislation, but there is still work to do when it comes to making abortion as accessible as it should be in Massachusetts,” Fernandez said. "That starts with expanding access to medication abortion and eliminating forced parental involvement laws to ensure that that all residents, regardless of age, can freely access abortion care.”

“Our community knows the harm and violence of anti-abortion extremism, and we need to stand up to it with every fiber of our being,” he continued.

In 1994, an anti-abortion terrorist opened fire at two Brookline abortion clinics. Two women were killed and five were injured.

POLITICO highlighted that the draft decision is preliminary and subject to change due to internal Supreme Court deliberations.