by Kylie Cheung
The majority of the one-in-four American women who have abortions are women of color, and 75 percent are low-income; about half (49 percent) live below the federal poverty line. Fifty-nine percent of women who have abortions are already mothers, and research by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research has demonstrated worsened outcomes in living standards for the children of women who seek but are unable to access abortions. Specifically, existing children in the households of women who were denied abortions were more likely to live below the federal poverty level for several years later than the existing children of women who were able to receive abortions.