In 1975, two years after Roe v. Wade prohibited states from interfering with access to abortion during the first two trimesters, the Illinois General Assembly passed a “trigger law.” It said all of Illinois’ pre-Roe prohibitions on abortion would automatically go back into effect if the Supreme Court overturned the landmark decision, once again criminalizing the procedure. That law is no longer on the books, but protection came more recently than many realize and amid growing efforts to restrict abortion in states nationwide.

Roe was overturned on June 24, 2022, making prohibitions on abortion automatically take effect in some states and highly probable to begin in others over the coming weeks and months. Some state restrictions and bans existed before 1973 and were never repealed. Others have been created in the last few years and lay in wait for this exact rollback in federal protections. They will punish people seeking or providing abortion care. Illinois is the only state in the midwest where access to abortion will automatically continue to exist now that Roe is overturned. 

Illinois is a haven partly because a 2017 law signed by then-Governor Rauner, The Reproductive Health Act (HB 40, SB 25), undid its trigger law. It simultaneously expanded abortion services in Illinois to financially disadvantaged women by enabling state funds to pay for abortion services for low-income Medicaid recipients and state employees. CAASE worked hard on the campaign for the Reproductive Health Act and knows how close Governor Rauner came to not signing it.  

Just weeks before the signing, the Governor met with CAASE’s Executive Director Kaethe Morris Hoffer and two critical leaders in the fight for women’s rights and equality in Illinois: Gaylon Alcaraz and Brenda Myers-Powell. As a survivor of the sex trade and a powerful advocate for girls and women who are commercially sexually exploited, Brenda helped the Governor understand that ensuring access to the full range of reproductive healthcare services is a crucial element of any effort to address sex trafficking and victims needs. Gaylon, a former head of the Chicago Abortion Fund, gave voice to how Black women are disproportionately harmed and held back by public policies that interfere with the ability of all people to make reproductive choices for themselves, including abortion. Kaethe was proud to sit with Gaylon and Brenda, support their advocacy, and share CAASE’s perspectives and expertise.

The fight for the Reproductive Health Act was motivated by the foresight that we could someday be in a situation where the overturning of Roe was a threat to bodily autonomy. Today, we are saddened to have been right. We are simultaneously thankful that Illinois no longer has a trigger law that would criminalize abortion and has instead further expanded access. In 2021, our state took the additional step of identifying access to abortion as a “fundamental right” under state law—another effort CAASE proudly supported.

CAASE exists because many people in our community are robbed of meaningful control over their bodies and sexuality. In working to prevent and respond to sexual harassment, rape, and sex trafficking, we see how public policies can exacerbate the devastation of sexual harm or empower survivors and help them heal. We will keep pushing for empowerment in Illinois and beyond.

Learn more about CAASE’s position on reproductive rights here and our general public policy and advocacy work here. You can also stay engaged on issues critical to survivors by subscribing to CAASE’s newsletter or following us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. 

CAASE published this piece on June 16, 2022 and updated on June 24, 2022. It was authored by Kaethe Morris Hoffer and Hayley Forrestal. Learn more about our staff here.