Is It Possible to Abolish Abortion in the US?

[scameter18]

I read recently, while studying Civics and Government for school, that the decisions of the Supreme Court are final because they are the highest court in the nation. Is it possible, then, for their 1973 decision in the Roe v. Wade case to legalize abortion to be overturned? Can they repeal their own decision, thus making abortion illegal again (or at least its legality determined by the states)? Or is abortion permanently legal now? Thanks for the help, I am not very good with civic issues. God bless.

 

[Christy_Beth]

I’m no expert, but I’m not sure that the Supreme Court can’t reverse their own decisions. At one time the death penalty was done away with by them, only to be brought back some years later. It would be nice if they reversed their decision.

 

[DexUK]

Courts enact the laws they are given by the legislature and arbitrate in the interpretation of such laws. They ‘set’ laws by means of setting precedents but do not create ‘new’ laws.

Therefore it is completely within the bounds of possibility that Abortion could be abolished simply by means of enacting laws that prohibit it.

The probability of this happening is another matter, however.

 

[JRKH]

The answer to the title question is No…because even when abortion was illegal, abortions still occurred. So - it is not possible to abolish abortion in the US.

That said, It is entirely possible to make abortion once again illegal.
Consider that at one time the Supreme court upheld racial segregation but later it did not.
This happened largely due to a shift in public opinion.

The biggest issue with abortion is that there are still too many who find it acceptable as a choice (even if they personally are opposed to it). In order to make abortion illegal once again there needs to be sufficient shift in public opinion. From this will grow many benefits.

1. Fewer abortions overall
2. More pressure on lawmakers to pass legislation protecting the pre-born
3. More pressure on the Courts to uphold these laws.

This is a long and drawn out process…It cannot be done quickly.

Peace
James

 

[TheWarriorMonk]

Is it possible, then, for their 1973 decision in the Roe v. Wade case to legalize abortion to be overturned? Can they repeal their own decision, thus making abortion illegal again

Yes, they can reverse their decision given the right circumstances. And this is exactly why so many people want to stack the Supreme Court one way or the other; abortion is legal across the country solely due to a Supreme Court decision. It can be reversed overnight. If it was actually spelled it out in the Constitution (which, IMHO, never will be), then who is one the Supreme Court would not (theoretically) affect its legality.

(or at least its legality determined by the states)?

This is actually a good observation, and was considered by the Court in the original decision. One of the options was to simply decide the case under the 10th Amendment, which would have left the decision up to the states.

 

[Kal2012]

I read recently, while studying Civics and Government for school, that the decisions of the Supreme Court are final because they are the highest court in the nation. Is it possible, then, for their 1973 decision in the Roe v. Wade case to legalize abortion to be overturned? Can they repeal their own decision, thus making abortion illegal again (or at least its legality determined by the states)? Or is abortion permanently legal now? Thanks for the help, I am not very good with civic issues. God bless.

Technically, that’s true. The final arbitrator of the law is the Supreme Court.

That said, the Supreme Court has reverses decisions based on the cases they hear. The Supreme Court chooses the cases it will rule on and not all cases sent to the Supreme Court will actually be heard by the court.

The example of segregation is a good example of this.

Abortion is legal now, but restrictions are still placed on it by the individual states - which is why some pro-choicers will complain about all women not having access to abortions in their states/local communities. In Mississippi, there is only one abortion clinic in the entire state and from what I understand, it is on the verge of being shut down too. States have taken the initiative to enact laws restricting abortions, specifically because they don’t agree with the idea that all abortions should be legal every time one is desired.

It is possible that for Roe to be overturned, but that’s a long term goal. It’s not realistic in the near-term. That’s why it’s important who gets on the Supreme Court and what cases are heard before the court. Because the President nominates people to the court, it’s important that we get a President who is Anti-abortion and will nominate someone who’s anti-abortion. Since these nominees are confirmed by the Senate, it’s important that we elect Senators who are anti-abortion to support these nominees.

Personally, I like the idea of the States being able to determine their own abortion policies w/out interference from the Federal government. My state is blue, but it isn’t nearly as Liberal as New York or California.

The major problem isn’t just that Roe made abortion legal, but it also defined ‘the right to privacy’ which a lot of case law is built around these days. So, if Roe is overturned, a lot of other legal precedent will be affected as well.

While it’s technically possible to abolish abortion, I don’t think that it will ever completely go away. Even when abortion was illegal, people were still attempting to get abortions.

So, yes, it is possible to abolish abortion, but realistically, we live in a fallen and sinful world and there’s always going to be someone seeking out an abortion.

 

[RKO]

I do not believe abortion could be reversed by simply enacting new laws. They would be challenged in court and ruled unconstitutional based on Roe v Wade.

It would take a constitutional referendum and a new constitutional amendment, or the supreme Court could reverse their decision.

 

[mountee]

You asked if it was possible and in my life anything is possible…with God’s help.

 

[sw85]

Abortion is the favored cause of the left, and the left is utterly triumphant. Therefore, abortion will not be abolished in the United States – you’d have to abolish the United States first. Which is maybe doable, but not with the Catholics we have today.

 

[robwar]

The answer to the title question is No…because even when abortion was illegal, abortions still occurred. So - it is not possible to abolish abortion in the US.

That said, It is entirely possible to make abortion once again illegal.
Consider that at one time the Supreme court upheld racial segregation but later it did not.
This happened largely due to a shift in public opinion.

The biggest issue with abortion is that there are still too many who find it acceptable as a choice (even if they personally are opposed to it). In order to make abortion illegal once again there needs to be sufficient shift in public opinion. From this will grow many benefits.

1. Fewer abortions overall
2. More pressure on lawmakers to pass legislation protecting the pre-born
3. More pressure on the Courts to uphold these laws.

This is a long and drawn out process…It cannot be done quickly.

Peace
James

I think the OP meant by abolish is make abortion illegal again. Yes one is never going to truly abolish abortion any more than murder or stealing but having something illegal instead of legal should discourage abortion instead of encouraging it because it is legal.
I’m sure these questions were asked when slavery was legal once upon a time and it took a bloody civil war to eliminate it here is the US. In England it took the determination of one man who never gave up to finally make slavery illegal in that country. We should never give up the fight to make abortion illegal, we should never give up the fight to change hearts and minds over abortion and we should view this as not if we are successful but rather faithful in the fight to end abortion.

 

[ExCatholicGuy]

Abortion is the favored cause of the left, and the left is utterly triumphant. Therefore, abortion will not be abolished in the United States – you’d have to abolish the United States first. Which is maybe doable, but not with the Catholics we have today.

I think that, for much of the left, abortion is really a surrogate for a whole range of “women’s rights” issues - including some which are not in conflict with Church teachings. I suspect there are a lot of women who oppose abortion on moral grounds, but are afraid to speak out for fear of undermining progress on other womens’ issues which they do support.

So I think they best strategy is not necessarily one aimed at making abortion illegal, which simply sets up a battle where all those other issues will be used as shields, but rather one which simply aims to convince women not to have abortions because it’s the destruction of a human life. It’s a slower and less certain path, but I think it’s ultimately more achievable. After all, if no one “chooses” to have an abortion, it won’t matter if they’re legal or not.

 

[Robert_Sock]

It’s not going to happen any time soon, but it’s going to happen.

 

[tjones80]

I read recently, while studying Civics and Government for school, that the decisions of the Supreme Court are final because they are the highest court in the nation. Is it possible, then, for their 1973 decision in the Roe v. Wade case to legalize abortion to be overturned? Can they repeal their own decision, thus making abortion illegal again (or at least its legality determined by the states)? Or is abortion permanently legal now? Thanks for the help, I am not very good with civic issues. God bless.

Yes, the Supreme Court can overturn an earlier decision. The only other way to outlaw abortion is by constitutional amendment and there aren’t the votes to support such a law.

 

[JRKH]

I think the OP meant by abolish is make abortion illegal again. Yes one is never going to truly abolish abortion any more than murder or stealing but having something illegal instead of legal should discourage abortion instead of encouraging it because it is legal.

You are quite right here and I did not mean to sound condescending - I hope I did not come off that way.

I’m sure these questions were asked when slavery was legal once upon a time and it took a bloody civil war to eliminate it here is the US. In England it took the determination of one man who never gave up to finally make slavery illegal in that country. We should never give up the fight to make abortion illegal, we should never give up the fight to change hearts and minds over abortion and we should view this as not if we are successful but rather faithful in the fight to end abortion.

The battle to change hearts and minds is truly the biggest battle and the most strategically necessary.

Peace
James

 

[veritatem]

I don’t think the issue is whether Roe v Wade should be reversed. The Church and other Pro-Life organizations have missed the point. What we need is a change of heart not a change of law. We are focusing too much effort on changing laws and not enough on metanoia or changes of heart in the minds of women and couples in the US. If Roe V Wade is reversed then women will still find ways to abort their children until we find ways to convince everyone of the sanctity of life from womb to tomb. This means no abortion based on a moral decision, no capital punishment, no assisted suicide, no euthanasia, no wars for any reason. As Thomas Merton said there is no peace without (social) justice. Unless and until we convince everyone that life exists at conception people will find ways to break the law whether laws of God or laws of man. Having said that I will state there is one legal issue that does need to be pursued and that is the person-hood of the child. When does the child in the womb because a person and therefore have the right to due process under state and federal laws. Must we appoint guardians ad litem to protect the rights of the child and perhaps of the father, whose name doesn’t come up in any of the discussions today.

The answer: people must get off their backsides and out into the community and show their concern about abortion and we must start at the root cause: the social injustice which gives anyone a reason (excuse) for aborting a child. We can’t do this by going to mass on Sunday and then going back to our comfortable suburban homes while 60% of all blacks abort their pregnancies (based on data issued by the City of NY and quote by Cardinal Dolan.) Stand and Pray at abortion mills; train to be a side walk counselor/referral specialist; march and protest; carry signs; and pray like your life and the life of your brothers and sisters depend on it. To do this you must get out of comfort zone NOW and not wait for someone else to solve this problem. Faith without works is dead…

 

[fastenatingguy]

I don’t think the issue is whether Roe v Wade should be reversed. The Church and other Pro-Life organizations have missed the point. What we need is a change of heart not a change of law. We are focusing too much effort on changing laws and not enough on metanoia or changes of heart in the minds of women and couples in the US. If Roe V Wade is reversed then women will still find ways to abort their children until we find ways to convince everyone of the sanctity of life from womb to tomb. This means no abortion based on a moral decision, no capital punishment, no assisted suicide, no euthanasia, no wars for any reason. As Thomas Merton said there is no peace without (social) justice. Unless and until we convince everyone that life exists at conception people will find ways to break the law whether laws of God or laws of man. Having said that I will state there is one legal issue that does need to be pursued and that is the person-hood of the child. When does the child in the womb because a person and therefore have the right to due process under state and federal laws. Must we appoint guardians ad litem to protect the rights of the child and perhaps of the father, whose name doesn’t come up in any of the discussions today.

The answer: people must get off their backsides and out into the community and show their concern about abortion and we must start at the root cause: the social injustice which gives anyone a reason (excuse) for aborting a child. We can’t do this by going to mass on Sunday and then going back to our comfortable suburban homes while 60% of all blacks abort their pregnancies (based on data issued by the City of NY and quote by Cardinal Dolan.) Stand and Pray at abortion mills; train to be a side walk counselor/referral specialist; march and protest; carry signs; and pray like your life and the life of your brothers and sisters depend on it. To do this you must get out of comfort zone NOW and not wait for someone else to solve this problem. Faith without works is dead…

AMEN, that is a great answer. There is a woman’s center supported by our Church. I will be doing some volunteering there.

 

[fastenatingguy]

I think that, for much of the left, abortion is really a surrogate for a whole range of “women’s rights” issues - including some which are not in conflict with Church teachings. I suspect there are a lot of women who oppose abortion on moral grounds, but are afraid to speak out for fear of undermining progress on other womens’ issues which they do support.

So I think they best strategy is not necessarily one aimed at making abortion illegal, which simply sets up a battle where all those other issues will be used as shields, but rather one which simply aims to convince women not to have abortions because it’s the destruction of a human life. It’s a slower and less certain path, but I think it’s ultimately more achievable. After all, if no one “chooses” to have an abortion, it won’t matter if they’re legal or not.

Well said!!

 

[JamesCaruso]

While it’s technically possible to abolish abortion, I don’t think that it will ever completely go away. Even when abortion was illegal, people were still attempting to get abortions.

But it was a handful compared to the more than 55 million since Roe v Wade. If one believes in justice, what will be the retribution for this travesty? Americans should fear greatly for their nation on this count alone.

 

[Tigg]

Abortion is the favored cause of the left, and the left is utterly triumphant. Therefore, abortion will not be abolished in the United States – you’d have to abolish the United States first. Which is maybe doable, but not with the Catholics we have today.

Took the words right out of my mouth! (And I think they’re working on abolishing the U.S.by the destruction of the Constitution and the undermining of our sovereign nation.)

But I think there is something much much larger here with more force than even the law (which it directs.) And not just in the U.S. I’m speaking of the diabolical that corrupts mans heart and throws us into darkness. And it is global. The left is triumphant for now…it will not always be so.

 

[JamesCaruso]

I don’t think the issue is whether Roe v Wade should be reversed.

No, they are not wrong and neither is you approach to change people’s hearts.

The overturning of Roe v. Wade is a worthy issue and should be included with all those things you mentioned. If there were a law that said it was lawful for a man to kill his wife, would we focus all our attention on changing men’s hearts regarding their wives, or would we work to repeal that law, as well? With a change in the law you stop most of the carnage. With a change of hearts approach alone, you save far fewer, So let’s both work to change people’s hearts and to stop the carnage.

Before Roe v. Wade there were far, far fewer abortions. It has been a landslide of abortions since. And as for personhood, already it is considered double homicide by many courts if you kill a pregnant woman. But in the case of abortion, the SCOTUS ignores this principle. This leads me to believe the courts sometimes let more than just the principles determine their views.

Right now the majority of people in this country believe that abortion is morally wrong. I think we may be able to create an atmosphere where the SCOTUS will change its position. It will not change woman’s hearts who decide to have an abortion, but it will take away the ease and convenience with which they can make this life and death decision. I am not suggesting we do not work harder to educate and bring about a change of heart in women contemplating abortion. All our efforts work hand in hand. One thing we shouldn’t do is fight among ourselves about what is the thing to do. There will always be women’s hearts we cannot change, so we also need a law to protect the unborn children.