Pro-Choice: The Logical Conclusion

In the landmark Roe vs. Wade ruling of 1973, the Supreme Court voted in a 7-2 majority in favor of the petitioner. In his citation of the 14th Amendment, Associate Justice Blackmun asserted that it was unconstitutional to “deprive any person of … liberty … without due process of law”. As well, Blackmun stated that a fetus can not be considered a “person”, and therefore it does not possess rights of a US citizen expressed in the 14th Amendment. While some pro-life lobbyist attempt to construct flimsy arguments against Roe vs. Wade using constitutional interpretations, the document explicitly protects individual liberties, including a woman's right to control her body.


Instead, the strongest opposition to the ruling comes from a moral opposition instead of a legal opposition; inexorably, the American pro-life movement is conjoined with evangelical Christianity. As stated in the Netflix documentary “Repealing Roe”, Paul Wyreich, a political strategist for Ronald Reagan, engineered the link between evangelicalism, the pro-life movement, and a new strategy for the Republican party. He framed the pro-life movement as a religious issue in order to draw the millions of evangelical Americans in favor of Reagan, the pro-life candidate. Since the Election of 1980, evangelicals have been the most outspoken opponents of abortions.


As well as ignoring the legality of abortions, the pro-life movement denies the science behind abortions. Most OB/GYNs agree that a fetus does not truly develop “human characteristics” until the 28th week of pregnancy, or the Third Trimester. When Randell Terry stated that “Planned Parenthood has killed more children than any other organization”, he incorrectly assumes that a fetus before the Third Trimester is a “child.” However, the pro-life movement prefers powerful indictments and captivating headlines instead of scientific and legal logic.


Plainly, abortion should be an issue between a patient and her doctor. Obviously, no one enjoys having an abortion, and some women feel guilty about it the rest of their lives. For this exact reason, institutions such as Planned Parenthood use education and honest dialogue as preventative measures. However, this narrative does not fit the misogynistic pro-life agenda whose sole mission is clear: to continue the perpetual subjugation of women.





https://www.landmarkcases.org/roe-v-wade/roe-v-wade-summary-of-the-decision