I think the majority of us have been waiting anxiously for the Supreme Court’s decision on Roe v. Wade. On Monday night, Politico revealed a draft Supreme Court opinion, from February — that would upend the landmark abortion rights case.
The 1973 decision ruled the Constitution of the U.S. “protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction.” This gave women total autonomy over the pregnancy during the first trimester and defined different levels of state interest for the second and third trimesters. This is protected by the 14th Amendment, and 46 states were affected by the court’s ruling.
If Roe v. Wade is struck down it will have a major impact on states across the country. And the leaked draft memo suggests it could be struck down.
This is a huge problem and a violation of reproductive and fundamental rights. If this opinion holds, those with a certain economic status will still be able to get abortions, not the women who are low-income. We saw how SCOTUS allowed Texas to do an end-run around precedent, so this isn’t a huge surprise. This inequality will impact those who don’t have the means. It will not stop abortions but stop abortion for those who don’t have the luxury of choice. (Laura Coates, CNN Senior Legal Analyst)
More than half of the states could ban abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned or even significantly weakened. Twenty-six states have laws that indicate they intend to ban abortions, nine states have pre-Roe bans that could be enforced and thirteen have trigger bans, meaning abortion will most likely be banned if Roe v. Wade is no longer in effect.
Here’s what else could happen without Roe v. Wade in the future:
-Women of color will bear the brunt of further abortion restrictions.
-Limits on abortion access can lead to negative long-term health effects.
-Some blue states are already taking steps to enshrine the right to abortion in state law.
Overall, a domino effect of legal, social, and economic changes would be triggered.
Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said “…abortion is currently still legal, and we will continue to fight like hell to protect the right to access safe, legal abortion.”
Abortion access should not depend on where a woman lives.
As a woman and a feminist, I believe we have to do everything in our power to fight for what we believe in. I truly think if this decision remains, people will view the court even more politically. This spreads great concern about what other precedents could be at risk.
The court’s opinion isn’t official until it’s published. We will be waiting for the decision at the end of June or early July.
Sources and other links:
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/02/supreme-court-abortion-draft-opinion-00029473
https://www.npr.org/2022/05/03/1096094942/roe-wade-overturned-what-happens-next
https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/03/us/state-abortion-trigger-laws-roe-v-wade-overturned/index.html