On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled to overturn the decision of Roe v. Wade, which determined that the right to an abortion is protected by the Constitution. The court’s ruling is incredibly harmful and threatening to the millions of individuals living in our country who rely on this procedure to ensure their safety and the right to reproductive rights.

Changes will immediately begin to take place as a result of trigger bans set in place by 13 states. Trigger bans are pieces of legislation drafted with the intention of being passed the moment Roe was overturned. These bans aim to completely ban abortion in all of its forms and without exceptions in their respective states, and are expected to take effect within the next 30 days.

Other states, including Alabama and South Carolina, are preparing to reactivate previous anti-abortion laws that had been initially blocked or struck down by courts following the precedent Roe had set.

The bans and restrictions being placed on abortion are going to result in more harm than good. Individuals with uteruses aren’t going to stop seeking abortions — instead, they will continue to seek them out in potentially dangerous and life-threatening ways.

Many individuals choose to have abortions as they do not want to put their own life at risk by continuing the pregnancy. Others worry about the quality of life of their child, who may be born with life threatening conditions, and decide that is not a reality they wish to instill on another life.

Without the ability to afford effective health care, many individuals who are less likely to have access to proper health care, such as those in lower income communities, are left with untreated medical problems that can cause complications during pregnancy.

According to the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, health complications are more likely to occur in Black and Hispanic communities than in white communities. These communities frequently lack access to proper health care in the United States, partially due to lower employment rates in jobs that would provide this standard of health care.

Another crucial aspect to consider as a result of this ruling is the precedent it will set during future reviews of groundbreaking court cases. Roe v. Wade initially ruled in favor of abortion rights for almost 50 years ago due to an interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s due process clause, which claimed the clause provided a right to privacy. This interpretation was later used to help rule in favor of marriage equality in Obergefell v. Hodges and in favor of access to contraceptives for married couples in Griswold v. Connecticut.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in a concurring opinion in Friday’s decision that these previously mentioned cases should be revisited due to the change in the court’s attitude toward the due process clause. The overturning of Roe v. Wade could be just the beginning of stripping away crucial rights from individuals across the country.

In countries around the world, court cases that protected the right to an abortion paved the way for more concrete pieces of legislation that solidified these rights. Some countries, such as Ireland, have access to abortion built into and protected by their health care acts. In almost every country in the European Union, access to an abortion is protected by legislation that outlines ways to officially request the procedure through a medical professional during the first trimester.

These methods of providing abortion access show how we can protect one’s right to an abortion through the use of legislation. Since it is clear that SCOTUS does not have the best interest of millions of Americans, our next step should be to establish new legislation. This way, the national right to an abortion will be more secure. Take this as your reminder to vote for representatives who not only claim to want to protect abortion rights, but have a history in actually taking action to do so.

If you want to get involved in the fight to protect abortion rights in the United States, go visit the Planned Parenthood website to sign up as a volunteer, or text PPNOW to 774636 to sign-up to receive updates from an on-duty representative.

Grace “Gray” Reed is a Sophomore magazine, news and digital journalism major. Their column appears bi-weekly. They can be reached at [email protected].

Published on June 24, 2022 at 10:05 pm