On May 2nd, 2022, in an unprecedented event, a draft decision from the Supreme Court regarding Roe V Wade was leaked to Politico. Justice Alito, who authored the draft opinion, wrote:
“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled . . . Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division.”
As of now, the court seems poised to overturn the 1973 ruling that took away the ability for states to ban abortion within the next two weeks.
Should the vote remain the same, it would not outlaw abortion, but instead would return the decision on legality to each individual states. If this were to happen, it is expected that many states would immediately pass legislation banning abortion entirely, and others would likely implement far less restrictive abortion laws in opposition.
As explained by Axios, multiple states have pushed the boundaries of Roe V Wade by implementing laws that would ban abortion at the 6-week mark (Texas and Oklahoma), and the 15-week gestation mark (Florida, Louisiana and Arizona).
The Guttmacher Institute reportedly expects 26 states to ban abortion or attempt to ban abortion entirely should Roe V Wade be abolished. Approximately half of the states in the US are expected to uphold legal abortions, many of which will still allow late-term abortions even if Roe is to be overturned.
The removal of Roe v. Wade isn’t the end of the abortion debate, it’s just the beginning. Regardless, pro-life advocates should see this as a major victory for defending the unborn and as a promising start for the post-Roe generation.
