On April 18, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court upheld the federal “Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003.” The court told women that, with their health at risk during a pregnancy, deciding what to do is no longer up to them and their doctors. The Bush Supreme Court has invited politicians into our bedrooms and allowed them to make our most personal decisions for us.
The Supreme Court struck down an almost identical state law as unconstitutional in 2000, and every court to hear a challenge to this first-ever federal ban on abortion declared it unconstitutional. Since the Court’s decision in 2000, President Bush appointed Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court and abortion foes see these appointments as an opportunity to undermine the Roe v. Wade decision.
The majority opinion was written by Justice Kennedy and was joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas, and Alito. Justices Thomas and Scalia filed a concurring opinion, reiterating their view that Roe v. Wade should be entirely overruled. Justice Ginsburg authored thedissenting opinion, which was joined by Justices Stevens, Souter, and Breyer. In her dissenting opinion, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote, "The Court deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the expense of their safety." We have to prevent this decision from having a devastating impact on women's lives.
Post new comment