The Era's Abortion Law Overturn: Exploring The Reasons Why

The overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022 by the U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal constitutional right to abortion, giving individual states the power to set their own abortion laws. This decision has been met with widespread protests and celebrations, reshaping American politics and triggering legal and legislative warfare over abortion rights and access. The Supreme Court's conservative majority, with three justices appointed by former President Donald Trump, played a pivotal role in overturning Roe v. Wade, and the impact of this decision is being felt across the country, with women's autonomy, privacy, and reproductive rights taking center stage in American politics.

The Supreme Court's ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization

In a landmark 6-3 decision issued on June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court held that the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion, overruling both Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992). This ruling returned the power to regulate abortion to federal and state legislatures, allowing them to restrict or prohibit abortion as long as it is not protected by federal statutory law. The Court's decision was based on the argument that abortion is neither a constitutional right mentioned in the Constitution nor a fundamental right implied by the concept of ordered liberty.

The ruling had immediate and significant consequences across the country. Several states introduced abortion restrictions or revived laws that had been dormant due to Roe and Casey. As of 2024, abortion is greatly restricted in 17 states, mostly in the Southern United States. The impact of the decision extended beyond abortion access, sparking debates about other constitutional rights such as access to birth control and same-sex marriage.

The Dobbs ruling also had a profound impact on American society and culture. It shifted the focus of the abortion debate, with supporters of abortion rights arguing for the protection of women's autonomy, privacy, and health care. The decision led to a surge in political activism, with protests and counter-protests taking place across the country. It also influenced elections, with abortion rights becoming a major issue in the 2022 midterms and contributing to a boost in support for Democratic candidates.

The Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization marked a significant shift in the legal landscape surrounding abortion in the United States, reshaping the debate and sparking ongoing discussions about the role of the Court in interpreting the Constitution.

The impact on women's autonomy and privacy

The overturning of Roe v. Wade has had a profound impact on women's autonomy and privacy, with far-reaching consequences for reproductive rights and healthcare access. Women's autonomy has been significantly curtailed by the removal of the constitutional right to abortion, as they no longer have the freedom to make private medical decisions about their own bodies and lives. This loss of autonomy is particularly acute for women from marginalised communities, including Black, Latino, Indigenous, rural, immigrant, LGBTQ+, and low-income communities, who already face systemic barriers to healthcare and are now faced with additional obstacles to accessing safe and legal abortions.

The impact on women's privacy is also significant. With abortion bans in place, women's personal and private medical information is at risk of being exposed and shared without their consent. This includes details about their sexual lives, pregnancy, and reproductive choices, which can be humiliating and invasive. Furthermore, the overturning of Roe v. Wade has led to increased surveillance, investigation, and prosecution, with legal penalties for those seeking and providing abortions. This has a chilling effect on women's privacy, as they may fear seeking reproductive healthcare out of concern for their safety and freedom.

The loss of abortion access also has wider implications for women's autonomy and privacy. Without legal abortion services, women may be forced to continue with unwanted pregnancies, becoming human incubators as described by Fulton County Superior Judge Robert McBurney. This infringes on their bodily autonomy and control over the timing of childbearing, with predictable exacerbation of inequalities in education, economic stability, and political life caused by involuntary childbirth.

The push to pass the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has taken on new urgency in light of the threat to women's rights, especially reproductive rights. The ERA would establish strong, explicit language in the U.S. Constitution, protecting women's equal rights and providing a new basis for abortion rights. However, the ERA has faced opposition and filibusters in the Senate, with only a few Republican senators supporting it.

The impact of overturning Roe v. Wade on women's autonomy and privacy cannot be overstated. It has resulted in a loss of freedom, privacy, and control over their own bodies and lives for women across the country, particularly those from marginalised communities. The ongoing fight for women's rights and reproductive justice continues, with advocates working to protect and expand access to safe and legal abortions, despite the challenging political and legal landscape.

The role of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

The push to pass the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has taken on new urgency as a way to shore up women's rights, especially reproductive rights, as the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. A draft opinion leaked from the Supreme Court in which Alito dismisses the idea that denying access to abortion violates women's constitutional equality rights. He argues that a "state's regulation of abortion is not a sex-based classification", citing the controversial 1974 Supreme Court decision—Geduldig v. Aiello.

In the Geduldig v. Aiello case, the Court ruled that a policy excluding pregnancy from a disability insurance program is not sex discrimination in violation of the equal protection clause because it does not discriminate between men and women but between "pregnant and non-pregnant persons". This interpretation of the equal protection clause has never been overruled, and in fact, the Court has never interpreted the clause to provide full equality for women.

The ERA, which both houses of Congress passed and 38 states ratified, was blocked by the Trump administration in 2020. If passed, it would establish that women are fully equal citizens before the law. The ERA would provide a new basis for abortion rights in the United States, a theory currently being tested in Pennsylvania under their ERA. Abortion providers and reproductive rights lawyers in Pennsylvania, led by the Women's Law Project (WLP) and Planned Parenthood Federation of America, have sued the state, asking the Supreme Court to strike down the ban on Medicaid funding for abortion as a violation of the ERA and equal protection provisions of the Pennsylvania Constitution.

Advocates argue that the state's refusal to cover abortion in its Medicaid program is sex discrimination because the policy excludes funding for a common, sex-linked medical need of women while funding all reproductive medical needs for men. There is some precedent for the principle that abortion restrictions violate women's equal rights. In 1998, the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that an abortion funding prohibition violated the state's ERA. The Court declined to give the government "the power to turn the capacity to bear children, limited as it is to one gender, into a source of social disadvantage" and noted that "women's biology and ability to bear children have been used as a basis for discrimination against them".

In his draft opinion, Alito argues that the people and their representatives should decide the rights of individuals. However, polls show massive public support for the ERA, with the majority of respondents—men and women, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents—wanting the ERA, and most thinking it is already part of the Constitution. Nearly two-thirds believe that the ERA would positively impact women.

The effect on access to safe and legal abortions

The overturning of Roe v. Wade has had a significant impact on access to safe and legal abortions in the United States. The Supreme Court's decision in 2022 ended the federal constitutional right to abortion, which had been in place for nearly 50 years. As a result, abortion access has become highly restricted in many states, with 18 states banning or severely limiting the procedure in the months following the ruling. This has had a disproportionate impact on communities of color, where systemic racism has long blocked access to healthcare and opportunities.

Prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, abortion was a recognized federal constitutional right across the nation. The ruling decriminalized abortion, allowing patients to access the care they needed without fear of legal repercussions. However, even with Roe v. Wade in place, access to abortion was not equal for all. Systemic racism, ongoing white supremacy, and coercive reproductive health policies created barriers for Black, Latino, Indigenous, rural, immigrant, LGBTQ+, disabled, and low-income communities.

The overturning of Roe v. Wade has exacerbated these existing inequalities, pushing abortion even further out of reach for many in these communities. In states with abortion bans in place, individuals seeking abortions may struggle to take time off work, find transportation, or arrange childcare. This can lead to worse mental and physical health outcomes, higher rates of poverty and debt, and decreased financial security. Furthermore, studies have shown that people who are denied abortions have higher rates of pregnancy-related death.

The impact of restricted abortion access is also felt beyond the individual seeking the procedure. Abortion providers and their staff are affected as well, as they may have to help patients travel out of state to access care or deal with the consequences of patients attempting dangerous methods of self-managed abortion.

While some states have moved to expand access to abortion by adding legal protections, the overall effect of the overturning of Roe v. Wade has been a significant reduction in access to safe and legal abortions for millions of people in the United States, particularly those from marginalized communities.

The political implications of the decision

One of the most immediate political implications of the decision was the impact it had on the midterm elections and political agendas. The leaked draft opinion, which indicated the Court's willingness to overturn Roe v. Wade, upended political races and agendas across the country. It refuted the argument that overturning Roe would only affect a small number of people in conservative states, as the fierce and immediate political fallout made clear that the decision would impact everyone. The ruling also ignited protests from both supporters and opponents of abortion rights, with people descending on the Supreme Court building to speak out for and against the decision.

The decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has also had a significant impact on the political landscape in terms of state and federal power dynamics. The ruling gave individual states the power to set their own abortion laws, with almost half of the states expected to outlaw or severely restrict abortion. This has led to a patchwork of varying abortion laws across the country, with some states moving to expand access to abortion by adding legal protections, while others have implemented near-total bans. This dynamic has further polarised an already divided nation, with Democrat-led states seeing an influx of out-of-state patients seeking abortions within their borders.

Additionally, the decision has had implications for the political strategies of both Democratic and Republican parties. For Democrats, the focus has been on protecting providers and out-of-state patients and allocating resources to help pay for their care. There is also a renewed push to pass the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) as an avenue to shore up women's rights, especially reproductive rights. On the other hand, many national Republicans have focused on condemning the leak of the draft opinion rather than addressing the substance of the draft. Political strategists within the party are debating the political risk of opposing a procedure that the majority of Americans support in some form.

The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has also had implications for the criminal justice system. With abortion now outlawed or severely restricted in many states, there are concerns about the potential criminalisation of those seeking or providing abortions. In the past, people have faced surveillance, arrest, investigation, and prosecution for abortion-related activities, and there are fears that this could happen again.

Overall, the political implications of the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade are profound and wide-ranging. The country is now facing a new era in which issues surrounding women's autonomy, privacy, and reproductive rights will take centre stage in American politics and shape the future of healthcare, criminal justice, workforce participation, and family life in the United States.

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