Millions of Americans lost a fundamental constitutional right of protection today as the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade despite nearly 50 years of precedent. Today’s ruling marks a shift in abortion law that will allow new rules limiting or banning access to the procedure in half of the states and in some places immediately.
The impact will likely be felt first in the GOP-led states in the South and Midwest. Thirteen states have trigger-laws on the books which provide for abortion to be quickly outlawed in most cases with Roe overturned.
Justice Samuel Alito delivered the 6-3 opinion that stated the reasoning for Roe v. Wade was egregiously wrong and exceptionally weak from the start. In a dissenting opinion, the court’s liberal bloc, Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan, declared, “With sorrow—for this court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection—we dissent.” The three liberal justices warned the decision to overturn Roe will have consequences beyond the court’s abortion precedents, putting other landmark decisions in question.
President Biden calls the ruling “a sad day for the court and the country.” He says, “With Roe gone, let’s be very clear: The health and life of women in this nation are now at risk.” He vowed his administration would take whatever lawful steps it can to protect access. “This fall, Roe is on the ballot. This decision must not be the final word. You can have the final word. This is not over.”
Diana DeGette, a democrat from Colorado, responds to the decision by saying, “At the ballot boxes in November, we’re going to elect politicians who make sure every woman in this country has the same ability whether they live in California, Colorado, or Texas or Oklahoma. We will not go back.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis says, “Coloradans do not want politicians making their healthcare choices. We will continue to choose freedom, stand against government control over our bodies, and will not retreat to an archaic era where the powerful few controlled the freedoms over our bodies and our health.” Polis signed HB 22-1279, the Reproductive Health Equity Act (RHEA), into law in April. The legislation takes a crucial step to ensure lawful protections for reproductive rights and abortion access in Colorado. The law ensures every Coloradan has the right to choose or refuse contraception; every pregnant person has the fundamental right to choose to continue a pregnancy and give birth or have an abortion; and that a fertilized egg, embryo, or fetus does not have independent rights under Colorado law. The Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR) led the passage of RHEA, which was first announced when the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in this case on December 1, 2021. “COLOR is grieving for the 36 million people, including 5.7 million Hispanics across the United States, who have lost access to abortion care because of this decision,” says COLOR Political Director Christina Soliz. “We have been preparing for this moment since 2016. We know that the burden falls hardest on people who already face systemic racism and discrimination. This is why we protected our right to abortion here in the state by leading the passage of the Reproductive Health Equity Act, and now that the Supreme Court has cleared the way for bans across the country, we’ll continue to lead in building a future where reproductive healthcare is safe, accessible, and without shame.”
The decision is a long-awaited victory for anti-abortion advocates who, since 1972, have mounted a determined campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Democrats are hopeful today’s decision will drive voters to the polls in the November midterm elections, expanding the majorities in the House and Senate to help allow adoption of legislation codifying Roe.
