Be The Voice, Gender Justice, Health and Education, Uncategorized

What is Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization?

by Ashley Crary Lidow & Maya Ward on Dec 8, 2021

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is the most consequential abortion rights case in generations. In Dobbs, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider a Mississippi abortion ban that directly challenges Roe v. Wade. 

Historical Overview: 

Core Legal Issue of Dobbs:

In Dobbs, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether bans on abortion before viability are unconstitutional.   

How will the results of Dobbs impact South Carolina? 

SC is a hostile state to reproductive rights, that will not change.

Check out this helpful visual from the New York Times to see how the impact of Dobbs could be seen across the country. Notice South Carolina has a black line around it, indicating that it is likely to eliminate abortion.

 

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A post shared by The New York Times (@nytimes)

What could happen? And when? 

There are three possible outcomes of Dobbs:

  1. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade and allows states to ban abortion before viability.
  2. Supreme Court allows states to ban abortion pre-viability when the ban does not “burden a substantial number” of people seeking abortion care. (this is where Planned Parenthood v. Casey comes in)
  3. Supreme Court upholds Roe v. Wade and does not permit states to ban abortion pre-viability.
(Photo Credit to KFF.org. Learn more about these outcomes here.)

Oral arguments for the case happened on December 1, 2021. A decision will likely be issued between April and June 2022. We will keep you updated as we learn more. 

What can you do? Here are 3 steps you can take to defend abortion access.

  1. Financially support state, local, and grassroots organizations (including WREN) that are working every day to ensure that abortion is accessible, affordable, and supported in their communities. 
  2. Join our outreach team. WREN is gathering a team of advocates across the state who will be ready to go when it’s time to advocate for our rights.
  3. Share this blog with others to educate them about Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. You can easily share the blog on social media by sharing our posts on Facebook and Twitter.

In the coming months, there will be many opportunities to discuss this case and take action to support abortion rights. To prepare you for those conversations and actions here are some talking points and explainers. Special thanks to the Center for Reproductive Rights for putting these together. 

Our Right to Access Abortion is Essential.  

The Court Must Affirm Our Constitutional Right to Abortion: 

The Rule of Law and the Integrity of the Court are on the Line. 

More of a visual learner? On December 3rd, Ann and Maya recapped the SCOTUS case and shared ways that you can get involved. Watch it here.

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