‘It’s really important that we have federal protections across the board,’ pro-choice advocate says

As the fight to enshrine abortion rights in the Sunshine State’s Constitution continues, a national group works to secure reproductive rights on the federal level. 

As next week’s election nears, and pro-choice advocates fight for passage of Amendment 4 – the citizen-led initiative that seeks to restore abortion rights after Gov. Ron DeSantis’ 6-week abortion ban went into effect in May – one advocacy group continues their efforts to protect abortion on the federal level.  

“Abortion bans across the country are extremely dangerous for women, and women are dying in this country as we speak because of abortion bans. And that is a true shame and a crisis in our country,” Veronica Ingham, Senior Campaigns Director for Free and Just, a national nonprofit focused on protecting and expanding abortion access, told Floricua during a one-on-one interview. 

“We are hoping that abortion is protected in November and that voters vote to enshrine the constitutional right to abortion in Florida,” Ingham said. 

The below interview has been edited and condensed for brevity and clarity.

Floricua: Can you explain why it is also important for women and families across the US to protect abortion access on a federal level?

Ingham: We do work in many, many states across the country and in the state of Florida. But our group is focused on federal action, federal protections for abortion. We want to make sure that abortion is protected on the federal level. And one of the reasons for that is because we have so many different laws across this country. There are dozens of states that have banned abortion like the state of Florida. But were there to be a national abortion ban, which extremists in Congress have made very clear that they would do, that would supersede any state law. And so, it’s really important that we have federal protections across the board. The law to protect the right to abortion should be the same in every state. That is what it was under Roe v. Wade and that is what we’re fighting for.

RELATED: Florida’s six-week abortion ban ‘is frightening,’ says this mother

Why is Florida, in particular, important in the fight to restore abortion rights?

Abortion access is a fundamental right, and a health care right that women should have. And since [Roe] was overturned in 2022, we have faced an abortion crisis in this country. I think this impacts so many women; many don’t know that they are pregnant at six weeks, right? But it’s also very challenging for women to learn how they can get care. There’s a lot of misinformation out there. And I think it’s very scary for Florida women, in particular, where women are not getting the care that they need to make the decisions that they need. 

Is it also a fact that abortion affects women and families financially?

In a state where there may be an abortion ban and a person has to leave their state to get an abortion, it may be extremely expensive. They may have to miss a day of work. They may not have access to transportation. And in a state like Florida, they may have to travel across multiple state borders to be able to get an abortion. That is an extremely expensive endeavor, for them to be able to make a choice about their own body.

I think that there are stories all across the country and in Florida, in particular, where women have been turned away at the emergency room and have had irreparable damage to their bodies and their health.

Which groups are being most negatively impacted by the state’s six-week abortion?

You know, I think we’ve seen right that these abortion bans impact disproportionately women of color and communities of color. But what I would say is that abortion bans impact everybody no matter your socio-economic status or the color of your skin. This is an abortion access crisis across the country for everyone. This doesn’t just impact one community more than another. It impacts everybody.

What does reproductive freedom in the state mean for women and for working families?

It means the freedom to have your own family and have your family make decisions that work best for you, right? Like these decisions are between you and your partner, you and your family, and politicians have no place in it. 

RELATED: Abortion restrictions delay necessary medical care, Florida physicians say in new report

Does an abortion ban affect all healthcare for women?

I think it absolutely does. I know that there are certain states where there may be doctors, medical students, who may consider that they don’t want to practice in that state because they could be jailed for providing essential care to pregnant women.

Has the work you have been doing to protect abortion on the federal level been well-received by both parties? 

 It’s been clear that abortion is an issue that crosses party lines; that the average American wants the freedom to make decisions for their family. That cannot be said about politicians. I think that it’s very clear that extremists and conservatives in Congress want to ban abortion and have and are not shy about where they stand on that issue. And I think it’s also very clear that they are out of step with where the average American is and what they want for abortion access in this country.