In 1970 the plaintiff Jane Roe (who used a fake name for anonymity) filed a lawsuit against the district attorney of Dallas County in Texas, Henry Wade. Roe challenged that the Texan law making abortion illegal except in life-saving instances was unconstitutional and violated her 1st, 9th, and 14th amendment rights by violating her right to personal privacy.

The Supreme Court Justices first looked at the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment. This clause protects the right to privacy and the Supreme Court determined that the right to have an abortion falls within the protection of Due Process. The court decided with a 7-2 majority, but with some conditions.

The Leak

A mysterious leak of a draft opinion from the Supreme Court shows that shockingly the conservative majority is planning to overturn Roe v Wade. Who could have seen this coming other than maybe you know every woman or leftist alike? The Women’s Health Protect Act aimed to codify Roe v Wade in September 2021 but senate majority leader Chuck Schumer doesn’t believe there will be enough support from across the aisle to pass it. In Justice Alito’s draft, he says horrifying things such as “domestic supply of infants” which is an insane sentence. I will not explain it more, if you don’t read that sentence and think ‘wow that is an insane sentence’ I am afraid you are too far gone.

Who will be most impacted?

If Roe v Wade is overturned 22 states have enacted “trigger bans” or “Pre-Roe bans” which essentially make abortion illegal immediately after Roe v Wade is overturned. These states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. 4 other states likely to ban abortion are Florida, Indiana, Montana, and Nebraska. In addition to these 26 states certain or very likely to ban abortion many other states have shown hostility towards the right to abortion so expect that number to keep rising.

Women of color and poor people will be most impacted by Roe v Wade being overturned. I think it is important in moments like these where I am scared or angry that I step back a realize that as a white woman living in New York my access to abortion isn’t going anywhere. In 2019 the CDC reported that Black women had the highest rate of abortion followed by Hispanic women, whereas white women had the lowest rate of abortion. Racism in healthcare is an ongoing issue that will only be exacerbated by an abortion ban because women of color are more likely to face high-risk pregnancies. Black women are 3 times more likely to die from pregnancy or childbirth-related causes compared to white women. Not that it’s a surprise but having a child is also expensive as hell. If you’re lucky enough to have an easy pregnancy and birth it can still cost thousands of dollars, and health complications only make the bill longer. WOC are also 1.8 times more likely to be in poverty compared to white women, add this to the gender pay gap discussed in an earlier blog, and it is obvious that WOC are being hung out to dry. Not to put on my tinfoil hat but if abortion becomes a felony do you know what felons can’t do? Vote. And do you know what group by and large consistently vote blue? WOC.

What does Roe v Wade Protect?

In the first trimester (up to 12 weeks) states must honor the woman’s right to choose to get an abortion. In the second trimester (13 to 26 weeks) the state may regulate abortions based on maternal health. In the third trimester (27 to 40 weeks) abortions are almost completely prohibited as the fetus reaches “viability” the only exception being when performing an abortion saves the life of the mother. But abortion is not the only thing on the chopping block if Roe v Wade is overturned.

What else is at stake other than abortion?

Politicians in Mississippi and Idaho are already considering banning contraceptives like IUDs and the pill, as well as emergency contraception like the morning after pill. Experts also predict that marriage equality could soon be up for debate.