FAQ: Abortion Rights Today

On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization and overturned Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, cases that affirmed the right to access abortion.

The impact of this decision will deeply impact the LGBTQ+ community as lesbian and bisexual women, transgender men, two-spirit, intersex, and nonbinary and gender non-conforming people want, need, and receive abortions. According to the Guttmacher Institute, bisexual, nonbinary, and transgender people are more likely than their heterosexual peers to seek an abortion.

Numerous factors explain LGBTQ+ people's disparate need for abortion, such as the link between poverty and lack of access to contraception and abortion rates; the lack of comprehensive and inclusive sex education in schools, which puts LGBTQ+ youth at risk of unintended pregnancies; and how LGBTQ+ young people—particularly queer and transgender youth who disproportionately experience homelessness and housing insecurity—may engage in survival sex resulting in an unplanned pregnancy and/or sexual assault.

As we recommit to securing abortion rights and access in the United States, we emphasize that abortion bans both reflect and reinforce deeply harmful stereotypes about women, and the relative value attached to women’s lives. We also stress that such bans impact not only cisgender heterosexual women, but LGBTQ+ people, too, depriving everyone who needs an abortion of dignity, autonomy over one’s own body, and the ability to make fundamental decisions that determine the course of a person’s life, such as the structure of one’s family, and the ability to secure an educational and economic future.

Interested in learning more? Here are some frequently asked questions about abortion access and how the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health can impact your ability to access this critical health care.