Skip to content

The World Watches as the US Pulls Back Their Long-Established Right to Safe Abortion

No amount of warning or preparation for this day can soften the blow. It hurts to watch as millions of Americans lose their constitutional right to abortion – the right to decide when and whether to be pregnant. This fundamental right was constitutionally protected for almost 50 years in the US. Now, today it’s not.

The Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade and instantly the US has become a patchwork of laws and regulations that grant different rights to different people across the country depending only on where they happen to live. This is a particular injustice we know too well.

In the low- and middle-income countries where Pathfinders live and work, access to critical health care like safe abortion varies widely. For decades, Pathfinder has worked closely with our local partners around the world to ensure that where the law allows for it, health systems can offer quality, safe, comprehensive abortion. We advocate for removal of legal barriers to safe abortion wherever we can. We partner with communities to overcome the stigma and obstacles that result in women and girls suffering and dying from unsafe abortions.

The US has become an outlier in the global trend toward progress. It is now one of only four countries in 28 years to restrict abortion rights. The reality is that many countries around the world are doing the hard, necessary work of broadening access to safe abortion and reproductive health care. Mozambique, where Pathfinder has worked for 25 years, decriminalized abortion in 2014. Ireland repealed its ban with overwhelming public support in 2018. Just last year, Mexico made it unconstitutional to penalize abortion. Soon after, Colombia’s Constitutional Court also moved to legalize abortion.

Advocates in the US can take inspiration from these advances and from the many other countries around the world leading the way. Globally, Pathfinder will continue the essential work of advancing health and rights, while helping to build collective resolve in the US for a permanent legislative solution preserving the right to choose safe abortion.

Women’s rights, health, and lives are at stake. We will not stop fighting for them.

More Stories

Workshop on preventing cervical cancer in Kano State, Nigeria.

Inside Kano State’s Bold Effort to Prevent Cervical Cancer

“This topic touches me deeply, as I lost my wife to cervical cancer. That painful experience has shown me how…

Read More
Community Health Worker counsels maternal health client.

Celebrating High-Impact Maternal Health Innovations

On this International Day of Action for Women’s Health, let’s listen to women and invest in health care that they…

Read More
Religious leaders in Boboye, Niger.

When a Religious Leader Becomes an Ambassador for Family Planning

“A few years ago, in the space of just 25 days, I lost two children; it’s something that I will…

Read More

10 actions pour promouvoir l’inclusion linguistique dans le secteur DSSR / 10 Actions for Advancing Language Inclusivity in SRHR

Récap, réflexions et ressources de « Qui n’a pas la parole ? Briser les barrières linguistiques dans le domaine des…

Read More
Supervision visit with community health extension worker at New Era Hospital in Kaduna state. Photo by: Bayo Ewuola

Task-sharing: A High-impact Solution for Improving Health Equity in an era of Dwindling Foreign Assistance

A fresh look at how task-sharing can be optimized in Nigeria By Amina Dorayi, Country Director, and Fanna Mairami, Senior…

Read More

Pathfinder Annual Report 2024

Amplifying Local Partnerships for a Sustainable Future Almost 70 years ago, Pathfinder started as a family planning organization—and we have…

Read More

Mobilizing Civil Society to Save Women’s Lives

By Amina Dorayi, Country Director, Pathfinder International Nigeria In Nigeria’s Kano state, maternal mortality rates are higher than the national…

Read More

International Women’s Day: In Their Words

Across Pathfinder, we are opening doors for women and girls to forge their own path ahead, live the lives they…

Read More

A wedding invitation you can’t accept: Pathfinder’s campaign against child marriage in Pakistan

By Ali Asghar, Senior Communication Manager, SA-MENA and Sarah Peck, Development Communications Advisor “Please join us in this grand celebration…

Read More

Reaching Young People through Edutainment: Reflection from the GAMIVAL Experience!

As the world grapples with the challenges of engaging young people in critical conversations about their health and wellbeing, innovative…

Read More
Pathfinder Placeholder

Pathways December 2024: Women Lead on Climate and Health

The urgency of our mission is underscored by stark realities. In 2022 alone, over 110 million people in Africa were…

Read More

Contributing to Global Health Security and Protecting Women’s Health

By: Madiha Latif As the world looks to the end of 2024—which has seen COVID-19 and destructive weather become part…

Read More