Ahead of Major SCOTUS Case, Interfaith Alliance Says Reproductive Freedoms Are Religious Freedoms

Reproductive rights and religious freedom go hand in hand. As the Supreme Court begins hearing oral arguments today in a case that could decide whether states can force doctors to turn away patients suffering emergency pregnancy complications, people of diverse faith and beliefs are speaking out to make this clear.

Interfaith Alliance, a national organization that advocates for inclusive democracy and healthy boundaries between religion and government, promotes the belief that protecting Americans’ access to safe and effective reproductive care is essential for upholding religious freedom and civil rights. The group has consistently challenged Christian nationalist attacks on reproductive rights, which have escalated following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

In a statement, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, President & CEO of Interfaith Alliance, said:

“In the case now coming before the Supreme Court, anti-abortion groups are trying to exclude pregnant people from long-standing guaranteed access to emergency medical care, prioritizing an extreme ideology over saving lives. Any ruling that would allow suffering pregnant people to be turned away by hospitals would be stunningly cruel and wrong.

“While Christian nationalist anti-abortion groups may use religion to justify their agenda, they absolutely do not speak for most people of faith in this country. Safeguarding access to safe and legal abortion is not only important for justice in health care but also for ensuring that no one religious group is allowed to impose their viewpoint on all Americans.

“Denying reproductive care is an affront to the constitutional guarantee that people of all faiths and beliefs should be free to make personal decisions about their own lives, led by their own values. That’s why a vast and diverse multi-faith movement across this country continues to mobilize in defense of reproductive rights wherever they are threatened – in the courts, in clinics and hospitals, at the ballot box and beyond.”

Interfaith Alliance works nationwide to uphold reproductive health access and justice for all through advocacy in federal and state legislatures, electoral mobilization around ballot measures, and the courts. The organization has championed multiple federal bills, including the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), which would create a federal right to abortion.