The court won’t stop at abortion rights

The United States of America is more divided than it has ever been.

With the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion legality is now in the hands of the states, meaning tens of millions of people will lose their fundamental, constitutional, human right to abortion care. But the Supreme Court will not stop at abortion rights. Eliminating the right to abortion now puts other rights protected under the 14th Amendment at risk. Fundamental human rights that we as a nation have fought for — the right to use contraception and the right to engage in a same-sex relationship or marriage.

In California, a state that will continue to not only uphold the constitutional right to an abortion but ensure the rights of other protected classes remain intact, I am not threatened. I am a heterosexual, White, middle-class woman fortunate enough to have been born and raised in a liberal state where my right to choose will not be affected by the Supreme Court’s decision.

But there are tens of millions who lost their rights to abortion care, and now other rulings will be up for consideration by the Supreme Court.

Thirteen states have “trigger laws” that were crafted to take effect if Roe v. Wade was overturned. A total of 26 states are certain or likely to ban abortion in some capacity: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

The Supreme Court is waging a war against women and people who can become pregnant, and others who, in California, are considered a protected class. The Court’s decision is ugly, is rooted in hatred, and will — as it so often does — affect the poor and working class, as well as Black people, Indigenous people and people of color.

Banning or criminalizing abortions will not stop abortions. Tens of millions of people will still choose to have an abortion for a variety of reasons — which are none of our business — despite this ban. But those abortions will not be safe, and many will die as a direct result of their autonomy.

Despite the protections I am afforded living in California, as well as the other privileges I’ve received as a direct result of my wealth, skin color and sexual orientation, I am angry and traumatized by this decision knowing it will affect so many who just want the power to choose and live their lives as they see fit. I know I am not alone in this feeling.

In the wake of this decision that is a direct assault on human rights, I implore you to understand your legal rights to a self-managed abortion, and to consider donating to an abortion fund.

Like generations before me, I will continue to fight for the right to choose — but I shouldn’t have too.