The legal battle, access to abortion
Win-Lose Situation
Roe v. Wade was a powerful and emotional movement that had a lot of success. As we know the Roe v. Wade case ruling affirmed the women’s fundamental right to an abortion in the United States. There were many obstacles along the way, but it was finally here, the moment that many people were waiting for. Although the movement was a success and women had the right to an abortion it did not mean that the government would stop regulating it.
After affects of the case
In Kentucky for example, there were still many people that disagreed with the ruling and decision of the court. The environment of the state was not back to normal after this event. For instance, in an article that I read Gavin Cleaver states that “due to the hostile environment, there is only one abortion clinic left in Kentucky, and only three physicians in the entire state willing to provide this service”. Kentucky’s population is approximately 4.5 million and has a length of 397 miles; thus, making it very difficult for a woman to get an abortion. This brings me to my argument that although women have the right to get an abortion, the government has made it very difficult and painful for it to happen.
Another example is Utah, which previously had 10 to 12 abortion clinics but now there are only 2 available. It is also Utah that has the longest waiting period in the country for abortions that is 72 hours, meaning that when she has her first face-to-face with the doctor, she will be required to wait 72 hours to get the abortion.
Rules that result in BAN
You would think it couldn’t get any worse than this, however, you are wrong. If a woman cannot get to the clinic twice, for any reason, she will receive a ban. If a woman cannot pay for the treatment (in some state's public funds are not available for abortions) she will receive a ban. If a woman lives in an area without providers who can offer an abortion she will receive a ban. If a woman is not scientifically sound (this could mean she has breast cancer or could have side effects to the abortion), she will receive a ban. Many states are fighting to make it easier for women to get an abortion, but many republican states are making it almost impossible for women to have access to safe, legal abortion, where they love.
My thoughts
I find this very inhumane for a woman to have to go through this process to get an abortion. Texas for example just put in place a new law that after 6 weeks you will be denied access to an abortion. It takes more than 6 weeks to notice and realize you are pregnant. It was set to 6 weeks as after that there are cardiac detections for the fetus. Many women notice they are pregnant within 2–3 weeks but a woman could have no symptoms or not realize at 6 weeks that she is pregnant, recalling the long process of getting an abortion. It’s time to stop this.
Article Mentioned:
Cleaver, G. (2017). Access to abortion in the USA — the legal battle, Volume 389, pages 2361–2362.
