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You can read the decision here: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf. I will update this post as I learn more details
# Analysis of SCOTUS decision on Roe vs Wade
On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a historic ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that established a constitutional right to abortion in the United States. The decision, written by Justice Samuel Alito and joined by four other conservative justices, upheld a Mississippi law that banned abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape, incest or fetal anomalies. The ruling effectively ended federal protection for abortion rights and left the issue to the states, many of which have already enacted or are poised to enact laws that would severely restrict or ban abortion altogether.
In this blog post, I will analyze the main arguments and implications of the SCOTUS decision, as well as the reactions and responses from various stakeholders and groups.
## The main arguments of the SCOTUS decision
The majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the case that challenged the Mississippi law, relied on two main arguments to justify overturning Roe v. Wade and its subsequent reaffirmation in Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992).
The first argument was that Roe and Casey were **"egregiously wrong"** in recognizing a constitutional right to abortion based on the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment, which protects the liberty of persons from state interference. The majority claimed that this right was **"not rooted in the nation's history and tradition"** and that it had **"no basis in the Constitution's text or structure"**. The majority also criticized Roe and Casey for creating a **"balancing test"** that weighed the state's interest in protecting fetal life against the woman's interest in terminating her pregnancy at different stages of gestation. The majority argued that this test was **"unworkable"** and **"arbitrary"** and that it had led to **"confusion and uncertainty"** in lower courts and among legislators, doctors and women.
The second argument was that Roe and Casey had **"failed to produce any stable national consensus"** on abortion and that they had instead **"provoked a strong and enduring backlash"** from those who opposed abortion on moral, religious or political grounds. The majority contended that Roe and Casey had **"imposed a significant burden on society"** by generating **"relentless litigation"**, **"divisive moral debates"** and **"polarized politics"**. The majority also asserted that Roe and Casey had **"undermined democratic self-governance"** by taking away the power of the people and their elected representatives to regulate abortion according to their own values and preferences.
The majority concluded that Roe and Casey should be overruled because they were **"wrongly decided and should be discarded"** and because they had **"caused significant damage to our constitutional system"**. The majority declared that there was no constitutional right to abortion and that states were free to enact laws that protect unborn life from conception onward.
## The main implications of the SCOTUS decision
The SCOTUS decision has profound implications for the legal status of abortion, the health and rights of women, and the political landscape of the country.
The most immediate implication is that the Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy is now in effect, making it one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation. According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, which represented the sole abortion clinic in Mississippi that challenged the law, this means that **"nearly all abortions are now illegal in Mississippi, forcing women to travel out of state — if they can afford to do so — or carry an unwanted pregnancy to term against their will."**
The broader implication is that many other states will follow suit and enact laws that ban or limit abortion access even further. According to the Guttmacher Institute, which tracks abortion laws and policies across the country, there are currently **24 states** that are considered **"hostile or very hostile to abortion rights"**, meaning that they have enacted multiple laws that restrict abortion access or have expressed an intention to ban abortion if Roe v. Wade were overturned. These states include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia
Source:
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/06/24/abortion-state-laws-criminalization-roe/
https://ndncollective.org/ndn-collective-responds-to-supreme-court-overturning-roe-v-wade/
https://www.npr.org/2022/06/24/1102305878/supreme-court-abortion-roe-v-wade-decision-overturn
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/24/roe-v-wade-overturned-by-supreme-court-ending-federal-abortion-rights.html
https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/24/politics/dobbs-mississippi-supreme-court-abortion-roe-wade/index.html
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-supreme-court-overturns-abortion-rights-landmark-2022-06-24/
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0
