WASHINGTON – The American Psychological Association has reaffirmed its commitment to reproductive justice, including equal access to legal abortion, affordable contraception, comprehensive sex education and freedom from sexual violence, with a particular emphasis on individuals from marginalized communities.
The association’s governing Council of Representatives voted 145–14 with five abstentions at its meeting on Feb. 26 to adopt a resolution building on APA’s longstanding support for reproductive rights (PDF, 91KB)opens in new window, based on “a preponderance of scientific data supporting the conclusion that freedom of choice and a woman’s control over her critical life decisions promotes psychological health.”
The resolution points to scientific evidence that the harms of abortion restrictions “fall hardest on communities already struggling to access basic health care—whether because of their lack of financial resources, young age, disability, immigration status or because they are Black, Indigenous or other people of color.” It calls reproductive justice, including access to legal abortion, a human rights issue, adding that people restricted from abortions have been shown to experience increased psychological distress or anxiety.
The measure expresses support for actions to oppose Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban and to uphold 50 years of Roe v. Wade precedent in the upcoming case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
APA has a long history of supporting reproductive rights, dating to 1969, when the Council passed a resolution asserting that “termination of pregnancy be considered a civil right of the pregnant woman, to be handled as other medical and surgical procedures in consultation with her physician, and to be considered legal if performed by a licensed physician in a licensed medical facility.” This was followed by another resolution, in 1989, identifying freedom of reproductive choice as a mental health and child welfare issue. APA has also filed numerous amicus briefs in support of reproductive rights in a variety of cases, including Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; Harris v. McRae; Bowen v. Kendrick; and Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health.