Abortion Legal Landscape After the 2022 Dobbs Supreme Court Decision

In June of 2022, the United States Supreme Court issued the Jackson Women’s Heath Center V Dobbs decision overturning 50 years of federal protection for abortion. Since that time, nearly half of the States have enacted bans, gestational age limits, or other restrictions that have severely limited access to legal abortion across large swaths of the country. At the same time, voters in several states have passed ballot initiatives and elected judges or other officials based on their commitment to protect or expand abortion access. In short, the landscape of abortion legality is in flux and is likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.

In place of updated didactic videos on abortion legality in the US, we offer the following resources that are updated regularly and help contextualize the current landscape. We will update them when new resources become available. If you know of a resource or video that should appear here, please let us know at info@innovating-education.org.

Last update: November 2023

Center for Reproductive Rights: After Roe Fell: Abortion Laws by State

Kaiser Family Foundation: Abortion in the United States Dashboard

Guttmacher Institute: Interactive Map: US Abortion Policies and Access After Roe

The Lawyering Project video with Tanya Pellegrini, Senior Counsel: Jackson Women’s Health Organization v. Dobbs. Published May 17, 2023.

ProPublica Webinar: Post-Roe: Today’s Abortion Landscape. Presented March 21, 2023.

Discrimination and the History of Family Separation in the US

Were you aware of the history of the child welfare system? What about the racist origins of the child welfare system?  If not, why do you think that is?

What information in this video was new to you? Does this history and this information influence how you think about the child welfare system?

What emotions came up for you as you watched this video? How, if at all, do they compare to other instances of reflecting on or learning about racism? What tools do you have to navigate these emotions?

 

Introduction, Level Setting, and Roadmap

Emotions often come up for health professionals as they navigate the topics of drug use, birth, and child welfare reporting. Healthcare professionals have reported feelings of guilt, shame, sadness, and confusion. Healthcare professionals have also reported feeling confident about their reporting decisions. Whatever your feelings are, we encourage you to reflect on and sit with them.

Make some notes for yourself now on the emotions that come up as well as how you deal with these emotions in your professional life. Some people find meditation or discussions with others helpful; some find rituals or physical activity beneficial. We want you to build your own toolbox to help navigate your emotions related to this topic.