Well, it finally happened. The longstanding conservative-dreamt death march of Roe v. Wade has finally led to a logical conclusion. Decades of complacency on the part of Democrats slow-walked the precedent right off the plank, one gruesome and grizzly step at a time. Ample time existed to codify Roe v. Wade into law, yet no Congressional or Presidential capital was spent on it. Now, Trump’s Republican-stacked Supreme court has finally made GOP wet dreams manifest by overturning it.
“Roe expressed the ‘feel[ing]’ that the Fourteenth Amendment was the provision that did the work, but its message seemed to be that the abortion right could be found somewhere in the Constitution and that specifying its exact location was not of paramount importance,” Justice Alito wrote.
The ruling ends a half-century guarantee of federal constitutional protection of abortion rights and allow each state to decide whether to restrict or ban abortion. We all know where that will lead — GOP-controlled States will ban abortion, allowing wealthy residents to seek abortions across State lines but leaving poor residents on their own.
“These days, “My body, my choice” could come from someone pro-choice as much as from someone anti-vaccine.”
“Roe expressed the ‘feel[ing]’ that the Fourteenth Amendment was the provision that did the work, but its message seemed to be that the abortion right could be found somewhere in the Constitution and that specifying its exact location was not of paramount importance,” Justice Alito wrote. The ruling ends a half-century guarantee of federal constitutional protection of abortion rights and allow each state to decide whether to restrict or ban abortion. We all know where that will lead — GOP-controlled States will ban abortion, leaving wealthy residents to seek abortions elsewhere but leave poor residents on their own.
The palpable irony here is that Democrats and Republicans agree on the singular issue of the government staying out of people’s personal lives… for the most part. I mean these days, “My body, my choice” could be spoken from someone pro-choice as much as from someone anti-vaccine. Personally, I believe the government should stay out of people’s lives except for demonstrative health or public safety issues (e.g. something obvious like vaccine mandates during a global pandemic).
Anti-abortionists have long cloaked the issue behind the veil of being pro-life. Scientifically, the thought process of what defines “life” and when life begins opens nearly as many questions as it attempts to answer. Religons have their own views on the subject (isn’t it funny, though, how everyone talks about abortion only through the lens of the Christian religions) but they vary, and no one would purport the State should adopt one over another.
Underneathe it all, of course, is a boiling cauldron of animosity toward women just…. living their lives in the modern world; or trying to, at least. There are so many personal judgements, sexual prejudices, pent up demons, and bottled anger that it’s impossible to say the issue boilds down to being pro-life.
In the end, I’m confident this matter will be laid to rest and women’s rights will be ratified by other means. The years between now and then, however, may prove to be very turbulent, divisive, and will leave many of the most vulnerable citizens in the lurch.
