The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has overturned the constitutional right to an abortion in a landmark decision on Friday overturning Roe v. Wade and Casey.
These landmark cases established abortion as a protected right of an American citizen. That is no longer the case.
The matter is now turned back over to states to “regulate” or “prohibit” abortion as they may now decide among their elected representatives.
"The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each State from regulating or prohibiting abortion. Roe and Casey arrogated that authority. We now overrule those decisions and return that authority to the people and their elected representatives." https://t.co/8IxUTJKyoP
— Spencer Brown (@itsSpencerBrown) June 24, 2022
Stunning 6-3 Decision
The 6-3 decision overturned Roe v. Wade, which had made abortion a federal right for women since 1973.
This opinion from SCOTUS had been leaked as a draft, leading to dozens of attacks on pro-life and pregnancy centers across the country, including an attempted firebombing of an anti-abortion Washington state politician.
There was also an attempted murder of SCOTUS Justice Brett Kavanaugh. That was after a California man called Nick Roske was arrested outside Kavanaugh’s home with handcuffs, a weapon, and gear to break into Kavanaugh’s home.
Joe Biden, who is a pro-choice Catholic, is expected to give a statement on the overturning of Roe on Friday.
Roe allowed abortion for up to two trimesters since the 1970s. That is now going back to the states.
Where Will Abortion Still Be Legal?
Abortion is likely to be banned completely in around 25 states, especially those with Republican governors and statehouses. Some states will allow some abortions, but restrict it much more than they are currently able to.
The other half of the states are likely to keep abortion as is, especially blue states such as California and New York.
The opinion overturning Roe was written by conservative-leaning Justice Samuel Alito. He explained why Roe is being overturned as well as its follow-up case of Casey.
According to Alito, there is no mention in the Constitution of abortion; saying Roe is supported by the 14th Amendment is not legally supportable. He declares abortion must now be returned to the states.
The entire politics of this country just changed.
— Ben Domenech (@bdomenech) June 24, 2022
Liberal Justices Dissent
The three liberal justices who disagreed with overturning Roe say this makes women have “no rights” once they are pregnant. They said it “forces” women to give birth even when it harms herself or her family situation.
The case led to the overturning of Roe was Dobbs v. Mississippi, in which the state of Mississippi was defending its right to ban most abortions after 15 weeks of being pregnant.
This now led to this moment in which Roe itself has been overturned.
High fencing has been put up around the Supreme Court. The Democrat Party is likely to react very angrily to what has happened and use it to try to galvanize voter turnout in November.
We are awaiting Joe Biden’s statement on this matter, as the nation’s politics have changed forever ahead of the upcoming midterms.
