Choices

Yesterday the Supreme Court sent Roe v Wade (RvW) back where it should have always been: to each individual state. This Constitutionally correct ruling has sent people on both sides of the issue into a complete tizzy. I get it. Truly. But let’s pull the emotions back and look at this ruling objectively.

Overturning RvW has less to do with women’s rights/body autonomy, and way more to do with adhering to our Constitution. As stated in the Constitution re State’s Rights “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

RvW was legislating from the bench. It bypassed the set forth system of putting laws in place. The Supreme Court is there to determine if any law passed goes against the Constitution. They are not there to unilaterally create law.

Let me back up. We have 3 branches of government. The legislative, the executive, and the judicial. The purpose for this is to create checks and balances.

The legislative side has the House and the Senate. Combined they are known as Congress. They are responsible for drafting and sending bills to the President to sign into law.

The judicial side is the Supreme Court. A body of 9 judges from varying backgrounds, who confer and oversee cases that challenge the constitutionality of any given law.

The executive side is the President. This person signs or vetos bills that are presented to them from Congress.

This system works well when it is used properly. No one branch has total authority (executive orders are a whole other thing and deserve their own article). Unfortunately, with RvW, the judicial branch took full authority over allowing abortions. There wasn’t anything passed in Congress. No bill sent to the President. Just a majority ruling by the Supreme Court.

This is outside how the process ought to go.

So now, 40+ years since that ruling, we have accepted this as the law of the land. Except, it really isn’t. Absolutely nowhere in the Constitution does is explicitly say anything about a woman’s right to choose.

This Supreme Court ruling simply says that this is NOT a Federal issue. It is now up to each state to determine if they will keep the laws on the books, modify them, or strike them completely.

While this can seem daunting to many, and it will definitely require nuance and being vocal to effect anything, it’s absolutely the way this should have always been.

Choice has actually expanded! You have the choice to get your State Representatives to do what you want. You have the choice to use any birth control method you prefer. Most importantly, you have the choice of where to live.