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Dani Thayer, left, and Marina Lanae, right, both of Tulsa, Okla., hold pro-choice signs at the state Capitol, Wednesday, April 13, 2022, in Oklahoma City. Oklahoma’s Republican-led state Legislature passed several anti-abortion restrictions in recent weeks, part of a movement in conservative states to curtail women’s reproductive rights. Anti-abortion lawmakers are hopeful the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court might even overturn the nationwide right that has existed for nearly 50 years.
January 2023 should be the month we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that struck down most state restrictions on abortion. Commemorations and exhibits planned nationwide are being adjusted to a new reality.
Women seeking abortion face an uphill battle in 2023 to navigate a confusing maze of changing laws and regulations in response to last year’s Supreme Court decision to roll back Roe.
State by state, there are bans, barriers and ballot issues creating a complex web of reproductive rights — a kind of wild west for women facing a blurry spectrum from highly restrictive to highly permissive environments depending on where they live. Since Roe was overturned, 14 states have moved to end abortion access, while others seek to preserve it, with many states in varying stages of litigation.
But beyond abortion, there is a wider, deeper, more damaging set of aftershocks from the high court’s decision that relate to women.
The United States is unique in part because, as we have grown and evolved, we have tended to add individual rights, not subtract them.
The 19th Amendment, passed by Congress in 1919 and ratified in 1920, granted women the right to vote.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 added to the rights of many by prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
The Respect for Marriage Act, passed by Congress last year and signed into law by President Biden in December, added a layer of protection for same-sex couples by ensuring their marriages would be recognized across state lines, including the recognition of federal benefits.
The overturning Roe v. Wade has subtracted rights. It is a stark reminder of how fragile and incomplete women’s rights are in this country.
Let’s face it: Even the Equal Rights Amendment has not crossed the finish line. Thirty-eight states have now ratified it, with deadlines looming to get it fully ratified. This measure was introduced in 1923 and took Congress 50 years to pass.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade undercuts federal authority at a time when Americans are deeply skeptical of all forms of government. Little by little our national cohesion is cracking as individuals split into red states and blue states.
Yes, we are turning the clock back to the days of dark alleys and secret abortions. Are we going to have an underground railway to get women safely across borders into states that allow the procedure? Will state police pull over vehicles if they suspect there is a woman seeking an abortion in the car?
Many young people say they will now choose where to attend college based on which states legally protect abortion. Thirty-nine percent of Gen Z students report wanting to move out of states with strict abortion bans, and some report wanting to leave the United States entirely.
The Supreme Court decision also comes at a time when more Americans are turning to violence to solve problems. Attacks on both abortion and pro-life clinics seem to be on the rise. According to the COVID States Project, one in four Americans now say violence against the government is justified — in line with other reports suggesting that people are more likely today to contemplate violence than in previous times.
So, what’s next?
The new Republican Congress will no doubt try to curb the ability of citizens and lawmakers to allow new ballot initiatives, especially as they relate to abortion.
Another looming fault line will be whether the abortion pill, mifepristone, which can be purchased at U.S. pharmacies with a prescription, will be available.
Until now, the first in a two-drug medication abortion protocol was available only in certain clinics or via mail-order pharmacies from a certified health care provider.
Already local pharmacies, not the big chains, say they will make individual decisions about stocking mifepristone depending on the state or the personal beliefs of the pharmacy owner.
On the global level, we are losing our leadership position on women.
There are 600 million adolescent girls in the world today, and many look to America as an example for how to secure their rights as women.
Women’s rights come in waves and, like all rights, get rolled back in waves around the world. Countries like Afghanistan take notice when we backslide on democracy.
And that is the point. People on all sides like to hold up the U.S. as a great experiment — a beacon of democracy. But we are on a dark path of our own making, with the greatest threats to democracy coming not from external forces but from ourselves. Let’s get back to protecting rights, expanding rights and steering our nation righteously. It’s the American way.
Tara Sonenshine is the Edward R. Murrow Professor of Practice at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
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