After news broke that the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the national right to an abortion, our reporters went out to ask Montanans their views on the ruling. Here are some of their voices.
Sue Silverberg - Missoula, MT
“I am furious that women's rights do not seem to matter at all. Guns are more important, apparently, than women and children. And I believe absolutely that forcing women to have unwanted pregnancies is phenomenally hurtful not only to women but to children.”
Kennedy Campbell - Missoula, MT
“I want them to put bans on it, except only in certain situations where it might be needed, but for the most part make it banned. It's going to help women, it's going to help families because [abortion] can break up families. And it's gonna help kids because all those kids, and one of those people, they could have cured cancer. They could have become president, like we don't know because they just got killed before they've had a chance, so it makes me happy.”
Larry Anderson - Great Falls, MT
“We're not surprised. It was an outrageous decision.”
Nancy Anderson - Great Falls, MT
“I've already called our senators.”
Allie Hickman - Kalispell, MT
“I was heartbroken. Yeah, it made me very emotional and scared for my future and the future of those with vaginas.”
Ariella Wilber
“Well, I hope that abortion is no longer in the situation it's been in for the last however many years. I am totally pro-life and believe that the baby's life is sacred.”
Montanans access to abortion is unlikely to change in the immediate future even after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Montana’s Attorney General Austin Knudsen has requested the state Supreme Court overturn a 1999 precedent protecting access to abortion in the state.
