Five Supreme court judges voted to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade, in which the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S constitution guarantees the right to abortion. Although the right to have an abortion is not a federal law, the Supreme Court judgment has protected the rights of women to have an abortion since January 1973.
On behalf of the five judges that voted to overturn Roe v Wade, Justice Samuel Alito said, “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.”
Three of the nine Supreme Court judges concluded differently from that the majority. The judges were Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan, the same judges that did not support the gun rights judgment on Thursday. In a dissenting opinion, the judges said, “With sorrow — for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection — we dissent.”
Chief Justice John Roberts agreed with neither the majority nor the minority entirely. He was against an outright abortion ban but supported banning abortions after 15 weeks. He said he would have only loved to uphold the Mississippi law that only banned abortion after 15 weeks.
In conclusion, Justice Alito wrote that Roe and Cassey must be repealed to regulate abortion.
“We, therefore, hold that the constitution does not confer a right to abortion. Roe and Casey must be overruled, and the authority to regulate abortion must be returned to the people and their elected representatives,” Justice Alito wrote.
With this new judgment, there is no longer a single federal law that protects the right of women to have an abortion. That means each state will make laws to legalize abortion or make it illegal. The judgment has ended the clamor by the many Americans to give states the power to pass laws regarding abortion rights.
JOE BIDEN’S REACTION
As expected, President Joe Biden did not welcome the judgment with open arms. He even called it a “tragic error.”
“It’s a realization of an extreme ideology and a tragic error of the Supreme Court in my view,” he said.
He went ahead to blame his predecessor, President Donald Trump, saying he was the one that appointed the Supreme Court Justices that have made the landmark decision.
“It was three justices named by one president, Donald Trump, who were the core of today’s decision to upend the scales of justice and eliminate a fundamental right for women in this country. Make no mistake, this decision is a culmination of a deliberate effort over decades to upset the balance of our law,” Biden said.
He said the court took the country back to the 1880s with the decision. He also promised that the fight was not yet over. He used the opportunity to ask Americans to vote for more congressmen, women, and senators that would restore what the Supreme Court lost.
“The only way we can secure a woman’s right to choose is for congress to restore the protections of Roe v Wade as federal law. No executive action from the president can do that. Congress. as it appears, lacks the votes to do that now. Voters need to make their voices heard,” President Biden told reporters.
He advised women living in states with strict abortion laws to travel to other states if they wanted an abortion, as the Supreme Court judgment did not restrict such movement.
“Many states in this country still recognize a woman’s right to choose. So if a woman lives in a State that restricts abortion, the supreme court decision does not prevent her from traveling from her home state to a state that allows it,” he said.
PELOSI CALLS THE JUDGMENT AN INSULT
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not take it likely with the ruling, saying it was “an insult” and “a slap on women.”
Nancy Pelosi, a critic of former President Donald Trump, called the Supreme Court a Republican-controlled court.
“This morning, the radical Supreme Court is eviscerating women’s rights and endangering their health and safety. Today the Republican-controlled courts achieve their dark, extreme goal of repealing a woman’s right to make their own health decisions,” Pelosi said. What a harsh way to describe the highest court in her country.
BARACK OBAMA SAYS IT IS AN ATTACK ON AMERICANS
Former President Obama said, although he had seen the draft of the judgment, the judgment was still shocking. He went on to call it an attack on Americans.
“Today, the Supreme Court not only reversed nearly 50 years of precedent, it relegated the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologues—attacking the essential freedoms of millions of Americans,” Obama tweeted.
MIKE PENCE SAYS THE JUDGMENT IS A NEW BEGINNING
One of the notable Americans that has supported the ruling is former vice President Pence. In a series of tweets, Mike Pence commended the Justices for their courage.
“Today, Life Won. By overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court of the United States has given the American people a new beginning for life and I commend the Justices in the majority for having the courage of their convictions,” he tweeted.
The former Vice President urged every state in the country to make laws that show the sanctity of life.
“Having been given this second chance for Life, we must not rest and must not relent until the sanctity of life is restored to the center of American law in every state in the land,” Pence said.
REACTIONS FROM WORLD LEADERS
The outcry of the judgment is loud enough to be heard everywhere. Apart from reactions from within the United States, leaders of Canada and the U.K have condemned the ruling.
BORIS JOHNSON CALLS IT A STEP BACKWARD
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom has expressed his displeasure over the supreme court verdict. He said, “ It is a big step backward.”
“I have always believed in a woman’s right to choose and I stick to that view, that’s why the UK has the laws that it does,” he said.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU SAYS IT IS HORRIFIC
In a series of tweets, the Canadian Prime Minister expressed his support for women in the United States.
“The news coming out of the United States is horrific. My heart goes out to the millions of American women who are now set to lose their legal right to an abortion. I can’t imagine the fear and anger you are feeling right now,” he said.
“No government, politician, or man should tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her body. I want women in Canada to know that we will always stand up for your right to choose,” he said on Twitter.
Other world leaders that condemned the judgment are France President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish leader Pedro Sanchez. They called abortion a fundamental right of women that should not be tampered with.
The judgment on Friday has generated mixed reactions from inside and outside the United States. Some persons have questioned the nomination process of the Supreme Court Justices. Others have accused the Justices of having a different opinion from the majority of Americans.
STATES THAT BAN ABORTION
States like Kentucky, Louisiana, and South Dakota have already begun the process to criminalize abortions after the Supreme Court Judgment. Other states that will likely ban abortions are Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas, and Indiana. There are indications that over 20 States will ban abortion outrightly in the United States. Most of the States are governed by Republicans.
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