PSAC is outraged at the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs Wade, a 50-year-old ruling that protected abortion rights.   

This devastating reversal will harm millions including women and gender-diverse people, especially those who are poor, racialized, queer, as well as those with disabilities as they already face barriers to accessing safe and unbiased health care. This decision also has deeply ominous implications for other high court rulings that protect fundamental rights such as same-sex marriage, same sex relationships and the use of contraceptives. 

Over 65% of PSAC members identify as women, and our union has a decades-long history of fighting for reproductive rights and access to safe abortions. Advocacy organizations and experts have repeatedly warned that those who live outside urban centres in Canada continue to have little to no access to safe abortions.  

From the forced sterilizations of Indigenous women, to the lack of access to safe abortions in rural areas across Canada, the right to choose is a fundamental human right. Abortion is health care, and safe access is essential.