Paving a New Path forward for Abortion Access

On May 29, 2019, Gender Justice, in partnership with the Lawyering Project, filed a complaint in the Second Judicial District of Minnesota on behalf of two healthcare providers, the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis, and Our Justice. The lawsuit, Doe v. Minnesota, challenged a list of abortion restrictions on the grounds that they violate the Minnesota State Constitution.

On July 11, 2022, the District Court permanently blocked many of these laws, including:

• the ban on qualified advanced-practice clinicians providing abortion care;
• the requirement forcing patients to delay their abortion care by at least 24 hours after consulting with a healthcare provider;
• the requirement that young people notify both parents before they can receive abortion care;
• the requirement forcing abortion providers to provide medically irrelevant and misleading information to their patients;
• the ban on the provision of second-trimester abortion care outside of hospitals; and
• regulations that subject abortion providers to felony criminal penalties for minor regulatory infractions.

The court held that the Minnesota Constitution protects not just a fundamental right to choose abortion, but also a fundamental right to access abortion care. The Honorable Thomas A Gilligan said: “The right to choose to have an abortion . . . would be meaningless without the right to access abortion care.”

Read the Doe v. Minnesota complaint here

Deciding whether or when to become a parent is about freedom and control over our lives at our most basic level: our bodies, our families, our future. Minnesotans respect each other’s rights, freedoms, and independence to make our own decisions without the state government or politicians trying to sway us one way or the other.

AMONG THE ABORTION RESTRICTIONS CHALLENGED IN THE LAWSUIT ARE THOSE THAT:

• Require doctors to read a script containing irrelevant and medically-inaccurate statements to patients;
• Prevent trained nurse midwives and nurse practitioners from providing early abortion care;
• Mandate a medically-unnecessary extra appointment and waiting period;
• Mandate that young people notify both parents (with extremely narrow exceptions) before seeking an abortion.

Learn more about Minnesota’s abortion laws

How do Minnesotans feel about abortion? Read the latest polling from Perry Undem

THE FIRST UNITARIAN SOCIETY OF MINNEAPOLIS HAS A LONG HISTORY OF SUPPORTING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, RIGHTS AND JUSTICE. Rev. Kelli Clement, Social Justice Minister, First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis