We don’t know why this unprecedented Supreme Court leak has occurred. We don’t know what the final opinion will look like. But we do know that as it is, this opinion is horrific. The casual dismissal of the public’s opinion as extraneous. The misogyny and racism embedded in the draft. The blatant belief that abortion itself is racist and not that systemic racism, continuing economic inequality, and the hopes and dreams of people’s lives drives our abortion decisions.The demand that our abortion decisions be made by state legislators instead of by the people ourselves.This draft is an outright attack on people who need abortion and a dramatic miscalculation of the important role abortion care plays in the lives of so many.

Abortion is still legal today, and clinics are open. Even if the Supreme Court does ultimately uphold the Mississippi law, abortion will still be protected in some states. Unfortunately, many states will quickly move to restrict or outlaw abortion.

Protecting abortion access will take an all hands on deck effort – Congress and the President must join the fight to enact all measures in their power, including passing WHPA to broadly protect abortion access.

The final decision, anticipated for June, may look different. Already, organizers are hard at work trying to shift one or more justices in the majority opinion. But we know, and have known for a long time, that the decision in Dobbs is likely to be a drastic blow to abortion rights and access. Young people, especially low income and BIPOC youth, already faced barriers to care and will continue to be the most impacted by the decimation of abortion access. When that happens, young people will be ready to fight back and to work to ensure everyone has access to abortion when they need it. We will not let abortion access become a thing of the past, no matter what the Court ultimately decides.

We will continue to fight the restrictions and to center the needs of young people, particularly youth of color, gender expansive youth and youth from low income communities. We will expand our efforts to build our Youth Abortion Support Collective (YouthASC) into a strong, wide and deep network, currently 600+ strong that stretches from coast to coast—a network of young leaders at the ready to share their information and their connections to help other young people access abortion care — young people skilled at connecting their peers to the chain of support the movement built up in anticipation of just this moment: abortion funds, doulas, practical support networks, clinics, pharmacies, telehealth providers, self-managed care strategies, and more.

But young people cannot do it alone. We need everyone to join the fight at every level. Right now, abortion is still legal, and people in our communities need it.

You can help increase access to abortion right now with these steps:

1. Donate to an abortion fund near you
2. Demand Congress pass WHPA
3. Join YouthASC 
4. Search for a practical support network near you to help provide travel and housing for people who need abortion
5. Learn more about self-managed abortion at abortiononourownterms.org