September 21, 2006 – New York – The American Jewish Committee joined a diverse coalition of religious groups advocating for the religious and reproductive rights of women, in an amicus brief filed with the United States Supreme Court in Gonzalez v. Carhart.

“Protecting the civil and religious rights of all Americans includes the fundamental right of reproductive choice,” said Jeffrey Sinensky, AJC’s general counsel.  “When faced with reproductive health decisions, women and their families must be able to choose the safest medical procedure that best protects their ability to bear children in the future.”

At issue in Gonzales is the constitutionality of the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, which does not provide for an exception for the health of the woman.

  “All women whose health is at risk should be free to seek the safest medical treatment, without governmental coercion or constraint, in making the difficult decision whether to terminate a pregnancy,” states the brief filed by the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice.