LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The reality of the abortion debate: Who really wins?
The Supreme Court’s oral arguments in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization has both sides of the abortion debate waiting in anticipation. The potential divisiveness of the upcoming decision could split an already divided country wide open and impact whether the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion will be overturned.
The case relates to a law passed in Mississippi outlawing abortion after 15 weeks gestation, which is before the fetus is considered viable (24 weeks). In 1973, the court held that the 14th Amendment’s due process clause includes the right to privacy that protects the decision to have an abortion.
The “pro-life-anti-choice” organizations argue that the 1973 Roe decision took away states’ rights to decide their own abortion restrictions. Those who believe in a woman’s right to choose, however, would argue that the courts made it clear that it is a woman’s right to make this decision before fetus viability. Julie Rikelman, litigation director for the Center for Reproductive Rights, states that “since the facts haven’t changed, and nothing has changed in terms of the law, then there is no basis for the Supreme Court to reach a different decision today.”
Scholars, public health professionals, the American Public Health Association, the Guttmacher Institute, and the Center for U.S. Policy have signed an amicus brief that “abortion is an essential component of reproductive health and if banned would disproportionately affect marginalized populations.”
Furthermore, public opinion on abortion has remained stable over the past 5 years and 59% of the country agrees that abortion remains legal, according to a Pew Research Center poll. The reality is, legal or not, abortion is not going away. Striking down Roe will only lead to taking abortion to the backroom unsafe practices prior to Roe and women will die. And if that happens, no one will win the debate.
Judi Hirshfield-Bartek, Falmouth
The writer is a member of the Upper Cape Women's Coalition
This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod Times Letters: Abortion Supreme Court case and debate
