The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is a stunning reversal of legal precedent and the loss of a constitutional right that has been protected for almost half a century. The reversal of Roe v. Wade is not only a devastating loss of reproductive rights for women in the United States but it is also an affront to the fundamental right to bodily autonomy and to our privacy rights. Furthermore, it opens the door to legal challenges that threaten to weaken or eliminate other important fundamental rights and liberties.
Dobbs does not outlaw abortion in the United States; it simply leaves the legality of abortion access to each individual state. The consequence is that the choice of whether a woman has access to reproductive health services will depend on where in the United States she happens to live. Women of economic means who reside in states that restrict or outlaw access to abortion may have the financial ability to travel to states where abortion remains legal and accessible. However, low income women in states with restrictive abortion access now have no choice or options – at least not safe ones.
On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger led a contingent of Union soldiers into Galveston, Texas to inform its citizens that slavery had been abolished. Two and half years after the Emancipation Proclamation and less than six months before emancipation officially became national policy, the last Confederate bastion ended the inhuman practice of slavery - and more than 250,000 Black people in Texas were granted their freedom.
An Act Relative to Language Access and Inclusion (now H.4872 and S.2929) has officially been reported favorably out of Committee.
Yesterday, in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that a ballot initiative being funded by ride-share companies Uber and Lyft could not appear on the 2022 statewide ballot. The Court ruled that the initiative, which would have classified ride-share drivers as independent contractors and therefore not entitled to the strong protections generally afforded to employees under Massachusetts law, would have improperly presented voters with more than one policy decision to make, in violation of the state constitutional requirement that ballot questions may pertain only to a single issue.
MLRI was honored to join in one of the amicus briefs filed on behalf of worker groups opposing this effort by tech and business interests to exclude ride-share drivers from the protections of state law. We are gratified by the Court's decision to protect workers across Massachusetts.
For Immediate Release: May 25, 2022
Contact: Meaghan Hohl
Meaghan@sevenletter.com | (617) 448-6973
Boston, MA - Since February 24th, thousands of Ukrainian migrants have entered the United States fleeing the horrific attacks on their homeland by the Russian government. The majority of those who made it to the US border have been granted an immigration status known as Humanitarian Parole, yet their Parole status did not qualify them for federal needs-based benefits to help support them as they transition to life in the United States.
Update 5/25/22: Due to the rising COVID-19 numbers, the Commission has postponed the June 8 luncheon to a later date.
The Commission on Grandparents Raising Grandchildren will award MLRI Senior Policy Advocate Patricia Baker the 2020 John Lepper Advocacy Award on June 8, 2022 (award ceremony delayed due to the pandemic), in recognition of her successful advocacy on behalf of children with severe disabilities who are being raised by grandparents and other relatives.
On May 10, 2022, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means released its budget proposal for fiscal year 2023 (FY 23), which is referred to as Senate 4. The Massachusetts Law Reform Institute prepared this analysis of selected budget topics impacting low-income residents of the Commonwealth:
The Massachusetts Legal Resource Finder – www.MassLRF.org – is a crucial tool for connecting residents facing legal issues to low-cost or free legal services across the Commonwealth. The website provides Massachusetts residents with targeted referrals to legal services, nonprofits, courts and self–help materials. All referrals are based on the person’s specific location, income and type of legal problem.
For all media inquiries, please email press@mlri.org.
For Massachusetts residents seeking legal advice and information:
For legal services advocates and attorneys: