'Why are we still in this fight?': Savannah reacts to possible overturn of Roe v. Wade

A now verified draft opinion that leaked Monday night shows a majority of Supreme Court justices have privately voted to strike down Roe v. Wade. The possible overturn of the landmark 1973 decision that made abortion legal across the U.S. means that individual states would determine the legality of abortion.

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The Supreme Court verified the draft opinion — made public by Politico — on Tuesday with the insistence that the draft opinion "does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case."

This is the first time in the Court's modern history that a draft opinion has been leaked, leading to calls for a criminal investigation, widespread disbelief and protests.

Local activist Coco Papy said the unprecedented leak is very telling of the time we're in.

"I think, for many of us who work in the reproductive access space or the reproductive justice space ... have known that this has been a long time coming, I think as early as 2016. We sort of saw that this was very much the reality," Papy said.

"I think what concerns me the most is that while 77% of Americans believe in the protections and privacy that Roe v. Wade guarantees, I would say that the majority of Americans, up until last night, probably were not aware or were under the assumption that Roe v. Wade would be fine."

The case stems from a challenge to Mississippi's 2018 law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and only allows them in the case of medical emergencies or severe fetal abnormality. The disclosure of the draft opinion points toward a future where states across the U.S. could have a medley of different laws concerning abortion.

What does it mean for Georgia: If Roe v. Wade is overturned, here's how abortion laws in each state will stand

According to the Guttmacher Institute, Georgia currently has a six-week ban on abortion.

Lauren Frazier, the communications and marketing director of Planned Parenthood Southeast, said they have been preparing ahead of the U.S. Supreme Court's final ruling that could come in June.

The Southeast division of the nonprofit organization has hired a patient navigator that will direct patients to access states. The patient navigator will provide support by providing funding for travel, hotel-stay meals, and whatever else patients may need to feel supported in the case that abortion no longer becomes accessible in Georgia.

"Planned Parenthood Southeast and its partners are prepared for every possible outcome in this case. Even so, it doesn't make our reality less devastating," Frazier said. "Why are we still, five decades after Roe v. Wade was passed and constitutionally protected health care was granted in the U.S. ... why are we still in this fight?"

The tip of the iceberg

While the decision is not final and opinions may be adjusted later, the leak signals a major potential shift in American politics and law.

"It's abortion now, but it will be other things later. I really want people to see the structural decisions that are happening, and abortion is easy to attack," Papy said. "It's not going to end here ... birth control is absolutely going to be next, but more so, I think we need to look at the long history of precedents that have been set by SCOTUS. Gay marriage, education, major criminal justice reform all of these rights, all of these set precedents, will also come under attack.

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"If you have an institution that holds this much power to overturn settled precedent, they will not hesitate to overturn other precedents that they just politically or ideologically do not agree with, and that is incredibly dangerous."

Laura Nwogu is the quality of life reporter for Savannah Morning News. Contact her at LNwogu@gannett.com. Twitter: @lauranwogu_

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Georgia advocates react to leaked SCOTUS draft to overturn Roe v. Wade