The US Supreme Court overturned the ruling on Roe v. Wade in late June 2022, declaring that the federal right to abortion no longer exists and leaving it up to states to decide if abortion is legal in their jurisdiction. This puts American companies, as employers and key actors in public life and discourse, in the consequential role of affecting what comes next for the nation. Major corporations have already made a range of statements involving various forms of support for a woman’s access to reproductive healthcare, irrespective of state laws.

This July, the WHY team surveyed nearly 1500 adults (n=1,496), including representative samples of college and non-college educated women, Black and Latinx Americans, to understand: 

• Emotional responses to the ruling.
• Reactions to real-world case studies of public responses from brands like Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Patagonia, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, using language supplied from newspaper reporting.*
• How the ruling has affected voting intentions for the upcoming midterms – a good proxy for political engagement.
• How company responses to the ruling might impact consumer behavior.
• How the ruling may impact longer-term economic and life decisions being made by consumers. 

Click ‘Download PDF’ below to access the full report.

*For case study questions, see appendix of report, pages 10-12.