Roe v. Wade is history after the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3 in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which affirmed a Mississippi law that prohibited abortion after 15 weeks.
The ruling effectively overturns Roe, the landmark case that ushered in legalized abortion across the United States in 1973.
As expected, following the May 2 leak of a draft ruling, Justice Samuel Alito penned the majority opinion which was joined by fellow Justices Clarence Thomas, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett.
The ruling absolutely rejects the reasoning and justification behind Roe v. Wade, calling it “exceptionally weak,” and “egregiously wrong” with no grounding in history or constitutional law.
The ruling now turns the abortion question over to each state to decide individually.
A large police force has been gathered outside the court this month to monitor pro-abortion activists who have been marching, chanting and attempting to intimidate the justices in anticipation that they would overturn Roe, the landmark decision in 1973 that legalized abortion across the country. More than 62 million unborn babies have died since that ruling.
Pro-abortion activists have also been attacking pro-life centers and vandalizing churches.
Tensions began to mount after a draft opinion of Dobbs was leaked on May 2. Like many other areas of the country, Alaska has seen at least one church and one pro-life pregnancy center vandalized since the leak. Both the Community Pregnancy Center in Anchorage and St. Andrew Church in Eagle River were attacked over the last few weeks with graffiti, property damage and nails scattered in the parking lots.
Alaska is one of 22 other states that signed onto an amicus brief urging the court to overturn Roe.
While reversing Roe would has no immediate impact on Alaska, it does allow some 20 states with pro-life laws on the books to begin enforcing them.
Alaska’s abortion laws, however, are among the most liberal in the nation, and the State Supreme Court has struck down every legislative, executive or citizen-led attempt to restrict or ban the killing of unborn babies. Not only does Alaska fail to restrict abortion even modestly, it also publicly underwrites the procedures with state allocated Medicaid funds.
Some pro-lifers argue that Alaska needs to amend its constitution to explicitly clarify that nothing in the constitution can be construed to justify abortion. Others maintain that the constitution should include a personhood amendment guaranteeing that every unborn child has a right to life.
Others maintain that Alaska could address the abortion question through a constitutional convention. Every 10 years Alaskans are asked whether to call a Constitutional Convention. The next opportunity to vote for a convention is this November.
Still others argue that Alaskans should not bother with a constitutional amendment, but the State Legislature should use its existing constitutional authority to explicitly define what the “right to privacy” means in Alaska Constitution, and clarify to the State Supreme Court that it does not entail abortion, nor can it be used to justify it.
This is a developing story.
7 Comments
Another reason to hold a convention. At least the agenda should be full. Problem is, the freaks in Anchorage and Juneau will be sending delegates. Hopefully they’d be outnumbered?
Many, many people have been laboring since 1973 to overturn R.v.W. Protesting, organizing, fundraising, writing opinion pieces, supporting pregnancy crisis centers, buying ultrasound machines for said pregnancy centers, and supporting young single mothers after birth. In many blue states (such as the one I recently lived in) the vicious baby killers imposed onerous regulations on pregnancy centers, so ultra sound machines had to be staffed by RN’s and lawyers needed to be hired to navigate the tomes of regulations imposed upon them. I joined many others who were spat upon, ridiculed, mocked- but continued to toil away, often through many dark days (i.e. Casey v. P.P.).
Here is to the many lives that will be saved, and in remembrance to the many lost to the butchers bill. All 63,459,781 since 1973.
Here is to the many women who faced pressure to abort and did not.
Here is also to the many women who did have an abortion and have struggled or are struggling since. You are loved. You are whole. You are forgiven by Him. Always know that even in the dark places that you may go in your grief
Got to wonder about Kurka and his stupid unwise arrogance that lost us $$$ in regards to the pfd
This decision , roe vs wade was predictable.
Kurka for governor???
Not
That You Jesus
Prays answered
Very good, thanks to the supreme court for ending this heinous practice. Praise Jesus.
THANK YOU TRUMP! Trump is the entire reason for this ruling – all the other R were weasels on abortion and afraid to appoint the real deal. I remain floored there were Christian “conservatives” who didn’t vote for Trump. All the protesting and complaining didn’t do a thing. It was all about the SCOTUS all the time. Conservatives really are the stupid party, but in the end Trump saved us.
In reparation for Dave’s sad comment above: Yes, Roe was bound to fall, but it fell a lot sooner and a lot harder because of the hard brave work of people like Christopher Kurka. I’ve stood with him in outreach efforts to women & their unborn babies outside abortuaries, on the UAA campus, and praying peacefully in the face of pro-choice-to-kill protesters. He is fighting just as hard in Juneau., in the face of some ugly name-calling like Dave’s above. The fate of thousands of yet-unborn Alaskans will depend partially on who we elect now, because the fall of Roe is a necessary but not sufficient key to ending all abortion forever. Therefore we are at a critical juncture in the fight to protect women and their babies from abortion. I believe anyone willing to see past his youth, and really listen to his well-articulated reasons for changing our miserable status quo, will agree that we must begin Now to elect legislators like Christopher Kurka.