Antiabortionists seeking to grant embryos new legal status in order to challenge the legality of Roe v. Wade have lost their attempt to get the U.S. Supreme Court involved.

The justices rejected without comment an appeal from Liberty Counsel, which represented abortion opponents in Oklahoma who proposed a constitutional amendment to grant the unborn “personhood” status.

Pro-choice groups challenged the proposed amendment, which was rejected by the Oklahoma Supreme Court on grounds that it was “clearly unconstitutional.”

Amendment supporters had hoped the U.S. Supreme Court would hear the case and overturn the 1973 landmark case legalizing abortions.

“Pure and simple, these tactics are an affront to our nation’s Constitution and a bald-faced attempt to foreclose women’s access to a full range of reproductive healthcare,” Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said in a statement according to Reuters.

Keith Mason, president of Personhood USA, said his group would continue its attempts to get personhood laws adopted in Oklahoma and other states. Similar initiatives were placed on the ballots in Colorado and Mississippi, but voters rejected them.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

To Learn More:

US Supreme Court Rejects Okla. Personhood Appeal (Associated Press)

Oklahoma 'Personhood' Ballot Amendment Appeal Rejected By Supreme Court (Reuters)