• by Colin Kirkland , November 7, 2022

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A post shared by Reproductive Freedom for All (@mireprofreedom)

A new campaign led by abortion-rights organization Reproductive Freedom For All (RFFA) is urging Michigan residents to vote yes to Proposal 3, a ballot measure that would add an amendment to the state constitution explicitly establishing the right to abortion and other important reproductive health care. 

The ballot measure will determine whether the state’s 1931-era abortion ban can remain on the books -- a law prohibiting abortions without exceptions for rape, incest or the health of the pregnant woman. 

Abortion is currently legal in the battleground state, as the 1931 law is blocked by two state courts. However, the Michigan Supreme Court could lift those rulings and reinstate the law if the ballot measure fails.

If the proposal passes, the state would become the first to overturn an anti-abortion state law since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. 

Notable celebrities -- Natalie Portman, Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Sandra Bernhard and Alan Cumming -- have joined the campaign and have been featured across the organization’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram profiles. 

The campaign coincided with the release of “Call Jane,” a major motion picture starring Banks and Weaver that deals with what it was like in the U.S. before abortion access. 

Others featured in the campaign include volunteers and other abortion rights supporters like health care professionals. 

Doctors, said RFFA communications director Darci McConnell, have a lot of campaign credibility. “People trust them, so we thought it important that people hear from them. A lot of doctors aren’t used to being political, but we’ve had over 2,000 healthcare professionals endorse the campaign.”

“Depending on which doctor you talk to, resorting to the 1931 ban could cause loss of life,” McConnell added. “They feel it's a direct threat to the health and wellbeing of their patients.” 

Over a year before the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, groups like The ACLU of Michigan, Michigan Voices, and eventually Planned Parenthood partnered up to discuss protecting abortion access in Michigan. They settled on Proposition 3.

This past spring, the campaign saw widespread Michigander support. To ensure Proposition 3 qualified for a spot on the November 8 ballot, a team of 2,000 RFFA volunteers collected 754,759 signatures -- almost double the amount needed to qualify -- from supporters across every county in the state. 

Proposition 3 would ensure that every Michigan resident has the fundamental right to reproductive health care and could bolster efforts to put the issue on ballots in several more states in 2023 and 2024.

While abortion-related initiatives are on the ballot in other states, the outcome in Michigan may have a sizable impact given its status as a political battleground state.

“It’s the first proactive measure to protect abortion rights in the country, said McConnell. “And we’ve certainly heard from folks in other states that they’re watching us hoping to learn whether  this will be a possible way to protect abortion access in their states.”

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned on Friday, June 24, abortion has been banned in 14 states across the country. Prop 3 is one of five ballot measures this election season focused on abortion, the most on record for any previous year in the country’s history.