HEALTH CARE, REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS & DISABILITY RIGHTS
Here are our Calls to Action, Guides, and Explainers on the health care, reproductive rights, and disability rights. Interested in helping us track legislation and policy on this topic at the state or federal level? Take action with us.
POST-ROE SURVIVAL GUIDE
The US Supreme Court has overturned Roe v Wade. Abortion is now illegal in 13 states and at least 13 more are poised to ban abortion in the coming weeks and months. Find out how to protect yourself and those you care about and fight for abortion rights in a post-Roe nation.
A GUIDE FOR TRANS ALLIES
2022 is set to be a record-breaking year for legislation targeting transgender people, with most of the more than 240 anti-LGBTQ bills introduced this year targeting trans people. Learn how to cut through the bigoted anti-trans spin and be a better ally.
MAINE LEGISLATURE ROUNDUP: Read about the bills we tracked in our Legislature Wrapup!
We tracked more than 65 bills during the 130th Maine Legislature, which adjourned in the evening of May 9. QUICK ACTION: Learn more about the bills we tracked and helped pass this session!
CASE REVIEW: Kavanaugh on the Issues
Just before midnight Sept. 1, 2021, Brett Kavanaugh joined a conservative Supreme Court majority to overturn Roe v Wade in Texas. Although Sen. Susan Collins has yet to comment, we know her response cannot include claim that she didn’t know this would happen. Because in 2018, leaders of Suit Up Maine and four advocacy groups met with Maine’s senators’ judicial advisers on Kavanaugh’s record. Her senior staff included the case review we prepared in her official briefing book. Read our report on these cases and Kavanaugh’s relevant history.
WHAT’S NEW: Read SUM’s latest newsletter
Latest news: The For the People Act gets a vote in the Senate. And while other states have passed strict voter suppression laws, Maine is passing bills to make voting easier and more secure. We have more on that and a run-down of the latest legislative victories. Read SUM’s latest newsletter to get caught up on our current actions!
#FixTitleX: Reverse Trump’s family planning gag rule
The Biden-Harris administration has proposed a rule to repeal Trump’s domestic gag rule on the Title X family planning program. QUICK ACTION: Submit a public comment in support of the Biden-Harris rule by May 17!
COVID RELIEF: Support Biden’s American Rescue Plan
UPDATE: The COVID relief bill passed, with Maine’s Rep. Jared Golden joining Sen. Susan Collins and every Republican in the House and Senate in voting against the bill. QUICK ACTION: Learn how the aid package will benefit Mainers and let Golden and Collins hear from you.
2020 Maine Legislature Roundup Recap
An early adjournment due to COVID-19 meant that many bills we were tracking in the second session of the 129th Maine Legislature were left on the table, eventually dying when efforts to reconvene for a special session were unsuccessful. Our Legislature Roundup will reconvene with the Legislature in January 2021, with dozens of bills to track in the coming session. For now, see what passed in 2020 and what was left behind.
BLOCK EXTREMIST & UNQUALIFIED JUDGES: No Zealots in Lifetime Positions
We’re tracking the most concerning nominees to lifetime judicial appointments, in partnership with other progressive groups. Justin Walker, a nominee to the DC Court of Appeals, opposes the ACA, unions, and civil rights and is the latest in a long line of extremist, unqualified nominees.
QUICK ACTION: Learn more about Walker’s extremist record and tell Collins and King to vote NO on his confirmation.
VOTE NO ON 1: Defend Maine’s Vaccine Law and Protect Maine’s Children
74% of Maine voters overwhelmingly rejected Question 1, a “people’s veto” that attempted to repeal Maine’s new law that protects public health and safety by eliminating non-medical exemptions for school-required immunizations.
QUICK ACTION: Get answers about the law and the referendum, and learn how to effectively respond to vaccine opponents.
Suit Up Maine is an independent, all-volunteer grassroots progressive group that seeks to build a more informed and engaged electorate in Maine. Founded in 2016, Suit Up Maine is run by and for Mainers, and is not engaged in fundraising of any kind. Representing thousands of constituents across Maine’s 16 counties, Suit Up Maine raises awareness of and advocates for policies and legislation that promote equity and equality in civil rights, social justice, health care, the environment, education, the economy, and other areas that affect the lives of all people. Suit Up Maine is beholden to issues and action, not parties or politicians.
