Sean Young, legal director of the ACLU of Georgia, (from left), plaintiff Kwajelyn J. Jackson, executive director of the Feminist Women’s Health Center and and Andrea Young, executive director of the ACLU of Georgia, hold a press conference outside the Richard B. Russell Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse after filing a lawsuit against Gov. Brian Kemp. (Photo: John Disney/ALM)

Proponents of the Georgia House Bill 481 abortion ban effectively got what they wanted Friday: a lawsuit that could be the first step toward asking the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit its landmark decision in Roe v. Wade.

SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective and a long list of others sued Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Attorney General Chris Carr and prosecutors around the state in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Friday seeking to block enforcement of the law, signed in May and set to take effect Jan. 1.

While state officials didn’t comment Friday, a vocal supporter of the ban, Family Policy Alliance of Georgia Executive Director Cole Muzio, spoke out on behalf of those who backed it.

“We are certainly not surprised by this legally flawed lawsuit, but it is nonetheless chilling to see further confirmation that the abortion industry cares far more for profit than human life,” Muzio said in a news release.

“We are so grateful to Gov. Kemp for his unwavering commitment on behalf of the most vulnerable among us, and we support him as he continues to fight for life in court. Our hope is that the judicial system will end an era of tyranny and allow our state to protect its citizens, and our commitment is to keep waging the political and policy fight to ensure a Georgia where all life—regardless of location, stage of development, ability to speak, or connection to power—is cherished,” Muzio added.

The governor and the AG both declined to comment on Friday. The bill’s lead sponsor—state Rep. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth—said he preferred not to discuss the bill or the lawsuit on the record. But he sent a comment in a text.

“With science, law, and common sense on our side, I believe that all human beings with a beating heart will soon be recognized as persons here in Georgia,” Setzler said. “After the Supreme Court’s experiment of allowing so-called doctors to kill 62 million helpless children since 1973, ordinary Americans from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border are demanding that the killing finally stop.”

State Sen. Renee Unterman, R-Buford, who carried the bill through the Senate, said Friday she couldn’t talk about it.

Opponents of the ban had plenty to say Friday. They gathered outside the Richard B. Russell Federal Building with demonstrators and signs saying “Stop. The. Bans.” Their signs referred to similar bans passed by a dozen states and restrictions in others, all working their way through stages of litigation.

“We look forward to seeing Gov. Kemp in Court,” SisterSong Executive Director Monica Simpson said to a bank of cameras and reporters. “As a reproductive justice organization based in Georgia for over 20 years, SisterSong is committed to centering and amplifying the needs of those communities historically pushed to the margins. Georgia’s maternal mortality rate is the second highest in the nation, and black women in our state are dying six times the national average. SisterSong is bringing this lawsuit to protect maternal health and reproductive rights so that every person—especially persons of color—can thrive in their families and communities as well as maintain their human right to make their own decisions about their reproductive lives.”

The other plaintiffs include Feminist Women’s Health Center of DeKalb County, Planned Parenthood Southeast, other medical facilities around the state, as well as physicians and staff suing on behalf of themselves and their patients.

Feminist Women’s Health Center Executive Director Kwajelyn J. Jackson also spoke outside the federal courthouse, saying her organization has been providing comprehensive reproductive health services, including abortion care, since 1976.

“We are challenging this unconstitutional law because we are committed to serving our patients and to a vision of Georgia where reproductive justice is fully realized for everyone,” she said. “This clinic stays open.”

Planned Parenthood Southeast CEO Staci Fox said the opposition to HB 481 was “like we’ve never seen before.”

“As an abortion provider, a reproductive rights advocate and a litigator, Planned Parenthood vowed to fight this dangerous ban every step of the way,” Fox said. “Today we take that next step. By filing this lawsuit, we are defending the rights of our patients and we are lifting up the voices of countless Georgians who were ignored this legislative session. Abortion is still safe, legal and available in Georgia, and we plan to keep it that way.”

The plaintiffs are being represented by lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union in Atlanta and New York and with Planned Parenthood in Washington and New York. ACLU Georgia Executive Director Andrea Young and Legal Director Sean J. Young stood with their clients in front of the federal courthouse Friday.

“Politicians have no place in these personal decisions,” Andrea Young said.

“This legislation is blatantly unconstitutional under nearly 50 years of U.S. Supreme Court precedent,” Young said.

The complaint seeks an injunction to block enforcement of the law, as well as legal fees for fighting it.

Laura Simmons, Georgia state director of abortion-rights group NARAL, released a statement supporting those who filed the lawsuit.

“When Governor Kemp and his allies forced their extreme ideology on Georgia women and families, we told them loud and clear: You won’t get away with it,” Simmons said. “The ACLU’s lawsuit sends a clear signal that Georgians will hold politicians accountable for their all-out assault on the reproductive health and safety of Georgia women.”