White Plains, NY -- No matter what the Supreme Court says, no decision is more fundamental to a woman's liberty than the decision to become a mother, and that includes the agonizing decision whether or not to carry a pregnancy to full term. It impacts every subsequent facet of a woman's life. It is a decision a woman has a fundamental right to make for herself.

For nearly 70 years, we've grown accustomed to a Court devoted to the preservation of legal protections for human rights, including those unenumerated rights reserved to the people. Unfortunately, with this ruling, the Court shows again that it is committed to turning back the clock on those protections. As usual, the most immediate impact of this ruling will be most keenly felt by people of color and people with fewer means -- the least empowered, least represented members of our society. That's a human tragedy for those individuals. But with a court committed to such a cramped, retrograde reading of the Constitution, a Court that seemingly treats rights and Court precedents differently depending on political leanings, the long-term impacts will be felt by all of us. Justice Thomas' concurrence -- in which he suggests the Court should also overturn decisions on same sex marriage and contraception -- leave little doubt about where this is headed.

Taken together with the decision released yesterday limiting States’ ability to regulate who can carry guns outside the home, the Supreme Court has left Americans less safe and less free than we were a week ago. That is a travesty. Freedom- and equality-loving Americans can no longer sit on the sidelines. Our democracy is in serious peril. We must take action now, including expanding the Court if necessary to ensure our continuing freedom.