by Frankie DeFaria (staff writer)

Roe v. Wade is probably one of the few US Supreme Court cases that most, if not all, Americans know by name. In 1973, the Court made a landmark decision which ruled that the Constitution protects a pregnant individual’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without government restriction. Since then, this case and the right to abortions have become the foundation of an important concept: women’s right to own control over their own bodies. 

The right to abortion has faced opposition for as long as it has been in place. Anti-abortion politicians have entered office, and pro-choice activists and abortion providers have been murdered. Organizations that provide abortions and advocate for their validity have faced fines, and hundreds of laws restricting safe, legal abortions have passed. According to Planned Parenthood, “the 2021 state legislative season is shaping up to be the most hostile in recent history for reproductive health and rights. State lawmakers, emboldened by the new makeup of the Supreme Court and over 200 federal judges that the Trump administration appointed, are pushing a harmful agenda against our rights and freedoms.” By the end of February 2021, states introduced 384 anti-abortion measures and established eight abortion laws this year alone. 

Several trends against abortion are arising. In Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Kentucky, Montana, and Oklahoma, there is a push for bills preventing access to abortion medication, specifically Mifepristone (used for early abortion and miscarriage care), which is safe and effective. Another trend is targeted restrictions of abortion providers, or TRAP bills. These bills place unreasonable requirements on health care centers, for example, requiring that hallways are of a certain width to shut down abortion providers when they do not comply with the ludicrous demands. There have also been total abortion bans or numerous abortion bans after a certain length of pregnancy. Texas, Ohio, and Georgia have 6-week abortion bans. In Missouri, there is an 8-week abortion ban. Alabama and Arkansas have near-total bans on abortion with no exception to r*pe or inc*st. Lastly, there have been “personhood” measures that interfere with personal, private, medical decisions relating to birth control, access to fertility treatment, management of a miscarriage, and access to safe and legal abortions. 

Despite the attacks on what should be an implicit right to have autonomy over one’s own body, some states are fighting back and actively protecting abortion rights within their border regardless of what happens with Roe. States like New Mexico, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Delaware have passed new bills to protect reproductive freedoms while repealing old ones. 

The pro-life versus pro-choice war has been going on for decades, but it has become greater than that. In an independent country, everyone should have the ability to make their own choices about themselves, and they should be able to unobstructedly exercise the rights granted to them. These recent and ongoing efforts to take away those freedoms are violations of our independence. 

Sources: 

Beyond the Bans: State Attacks on Abortion in 2021

https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/types-attacks

https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/timeline-attacks-abortion