Legislating Reproduction

 Roe v. Wade has become one of the most controversial and polarizing decisions made by the U.S. supreme court. When Roe v Wade was passed, it allowed women the right to choose to have an abortion if they so choose. The court concluded that the abortion would fall under the umbrella of our right to privacy, which is only loosely outlined in the constitution. The court's Roe v. Wade decision put into place what is known as the trimester system; which outlined the small amount of restrictions women now have in regards to abortion. 

In history we are currently learning about government, and how it creates laws and how different branches of government check each other. One part of our textbook mentioned a law that was enacted by Massachusetts in 2007. The law was created in order to protect women going for abortions from harassment or violence, and required that any protesters must stand a minimum of thirty-five feet away from any abortion clinic within the state. People who were against abortion at the time heavily criticized this law, stating that it limited their constitutional right to freedom of speech. The government ended up agreeing with them, and consequently struck down this “buffer zone” in McCullen v. Coackly. When our government centers around a vague list that was written over 200 years ago, it can become extremely difficult to decipher what is a “constitutional right” and what is not. 

Another thing that we talked about in class that I found especially interesting was the Hyde amendment. The Hyde amendment outlined the strict guidelines behind having an abortion be covered by universal healthcare. This topic is extremely controversial, because Americans who identify as “pro life” are greatly against the idea of their tax dollars possibly going towards a woman’s abortion. The reason I found this so peculiar is the idea that women of lower incomes do not have the same access to abortion than those of a higher income. I would assume that this lack of access for the lower class resulted in influxed rates of at-home/ unsafe abortions, and also the amount of children living in poverty. When making decisions, the government must be extremely diligent in order to create the best possible outcome for our country and its citizens.