To the greatest extent allowed by law, we will continue to advocate for the personal decisions survivors choose while escaping intimate partner abuse and establishing long-term safety from physical, emotional, and economic harm.

ZeroV, Kentucky’s statewide coalition of domestic violence programs, has issued this statement on the recent Supreme Court decision that ended the constitutional right to access abortion:

“Today’s Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization has immediate, serious, and lasting consequences on the lives of domestic violence victims in Kentucky. Exerting power and control over a partner’s personal agency and sense of safety is the aim of intimate partner violence and abuse, with reproductive coercion and the control of bodily autonomy among two of the most common tactics. ZeroV stands with survivors and their families as our coalition and our communities process and respond to the manifold implications of this ruling.”

 

Statement from the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) echoes concerns about safety and autonomy related to the decision:

“The decision marks the first time in history that the Supreme Court has taken away a fundamental right, and it is an unconscionable rollback of constitutional privacy rights for all people…Abortion services are essential healthcare and having equal access—for all people, everywhere—is vital to their social and economic participation, reproductive autonomy, and right to determine their own lives. For domestic violence survivors, abortion access is a matter of safety…”