A Note On Roe v. Wade
by: mike morse, 07/01/2022
Last week, the Supreme Court officially released that they overturned the previous ruling that prevented states from banning abortion. The original Roe v. Wade case cited the “Due Process Clause”, which says “nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law”. Essentially, abortion became a federally protected right of personal liberty and privacy [of healthcare], so anti-abortion laws at a state level were deemed unconstitutional. Abortion has a richer history than most know about or acknowledge. Prior to the 19th century, abortion that occurred pre-quickening (when the mother first feels the fetus) was permitted under the English common law, and anti-abortion legislature was fairly non-existent in America before the 1800’s. Although not illegal, abortion was still looked down upon, but it was a service many women needed. Most prosecution of abortions before this time were more focused on illegal sexual activities involved, not on preserving the life of the unborn fetus. As states began writing anti-abortion legislature in the early 1800’s, the primary recipients of punishments for these laws were mostly poor and working class people, at even higher rates if you were not white. The quick upsurge of anti-abortion laws is speculated to be correlated with the growing competition between the medical profession (largely white, wealthy men with degrees), which coincidentally received significant funding at the time from the Catholic Church, and women, who (aside from midwives) would generally practice unlicensed out of necessity. By the end of the 19th century, 30 out of 37 states had laws restricting abortion, even before quickening.
Roe v. Wade set a new precedent by regarding a person’s right to abortion an aspect of their right to privacy of healthcare, and therefore it was unconstitutional for states to outright ban abortion. This new proceeding, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, is very dangerous. By overturning the precedent set by Roe v. Wade, abortion is no longer considered a private health care concern, and states have the right to make it illegal again. And looking at history, this is likely to happen quickly. To quote bell hooks, “granting [people] the right to have control over our bodies is a basic feminist principle” (Feminism Is For Everybody, p. 114). hooks argues that the right to abortion is the most concrete and material impact the fight for feminism has brought about so far. People have abortions for such a wide variety of reasons, and will continue to even if it is dangerous or illegal. Changing a person’s right to abortion from being an issue of private/personal healthcare to being an issue governable by the State is essentially revoking autonomy over personal issues of healthcare that may be controversial due to political, religious, or other reasons. Ultimately, people have always and will continue to get abortions, regardless of their legality. Lack of access to abortion will primarily affect people of poor and working class backgrounds, since any service is possible if you pay the right price. This issue is also incredibly anti-Black, as Black people die in childbirth at disproportionately higher rates than any other demographic. In fact, Black women have shaped much of the history of midwifery and reproductive care in this country, and ignoring this fact belittles how much this court decision is only mirroring the white supremacist patriarchal systems that this country was founded on. Slave owners used to prevent many enslaved women from having abortions, as that meant they were losing labor, viewing unborn children (and their mothers) as property, not people. We cannot ignore that early abortion bans (which began around the time of the abolition of slavery) were just another form of population control.
Roe v. Wade also set a precedent for many other civil rights advancements, including contraception, interracial marriage, and gay marriage. Overturning this ruling may set the grounds for other rights being revoked. One such worry that I have is that trans healthcare may be quick to follow in this direction. Many of the proponents advocating for the overturning of Roe v. Wade argued that abortion was not a historically accepted right or practice (although we know this is untrue). I can see access to hormones or gender affirming surgery being scrutinized similarly. Removing the right to make private decisions regarding one’s healthcare is a direct attack on personal freedom and liberties. All people deserve the right to make choices affecting their bodies and lives.
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