Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Mar 31, 2023

Alito's abortion history lesson in dispute

Alito's abortion history lesson in dispute

Justice Samuel Alito's draft U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide hinges on a contested historical review of restrictions on the procedure enacted during the 19th century.
Lawyers and scholars backing abortion rights have criticized Alito's reading of history as glossing over disputed facts and ignoring relevant details as the conservative justice sought to demonstrate that a woman's constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy was wrongly recognized in the Roe ruling.

Conservatives who oppose abortion rights have praised Alito's opinion and argued that the Roe decision itself was based on a faulty reading of history.

The unprecedented leak this week of the draft before the nine justices have finalized their decision - due by the end of June - has given critics a chance to scrutinize a work in progress, hoping other justices will have second thoughts about joining Alito, thus changing the outcome of the momentous case.

Alito's draft would uphold a Republican-backed Mississippi law - struck down by lower courts as a violation of the Roe precedent - banning abortions at 15 weeks of pregnancy.

His reasoning was that a right to abortion was not "deeply rooted in this nation's history." Alito relied upon a reading of state laws on the books in 1868 when the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment, which among other things protects due process rights, took effect in the immediate aftermath of the U.S. Civil War and the end of slavery.

The Roe ruling found that the right to abortion arises from the 14th Amendment's protection of due process rights, which the Supreme Court has found safeguards a person's right to privacy.

To Alito, the scope of 14th Amendment rights must be considered in the context of the times in which it was devised. Alito wrote in his draft that when the 14th Amendment was ratified to protect the rights of former slaves, 28 of the then-37 U.S. states "had enacted statutes making abortion a crime" even early in a pregnancy. This shows, Alito argued, that there was no understanding at the time of any right to abortion.

Some lawyers who support abortion rights said many states lacked criminal abortion restrictions until the mid-19th century and some banned it only when performed at a point later in a pregnancy - known as "quickening" - when the woman could feel the fetus move, usually at four to five months of gestation.

Tracy Thomas, a professor at the University of Akron School of Law in Ohio, said Alito selectively cited history as presented by anti-abortion activists.

"We do have to interpret history, but we also have to see the nuance, and he is missing the nuance," said Thomas, who favors abortion rights.

A brief filed in the case by groups representing historians supportive of abortion rights said that in 1868 "nearly half of the states continued either not to prohibit abortion entirely or to impose lesser punishments for abortions prior to quickening."

Even in places where all abortions were banned, "ordinary citizens continued to believe that not all abortions were criminal and that women held the power to determine whether to terminate a pregnancy," the brief said.

University of California, Davis School of Law professor Aaron Tang has argued that state laws enacted in the 19th century were not understood to ban abortion before quickening.

"There are huge risks trying to answer this 2022 question based on what happened in 1868," Tang said.

Conservative scholars reject the idea that there was ever an implicit right to abortion. In a brief filed in the case, Princeton University's Robert George, who opposes abortion rights, called it a "preposterous claim" and criticized the Roe ruling for relying on the work of the late scholar Cyril Means, an abortion rights supporter whose work Alito specifically rejected.

Some experts who back abortion rights said it is irrelevant what state laws were on abortion more than 150 years ago.

The Supreme Court has faced accusations of a selective reading of history before, notably when it found in 2008 that the Constitution's Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms included an individual's right to own a weapon for self-defense in the home.

The late Justice John Paul Stevens, who dissented in that case, later wrote of his disappointment of how the court's majority handled the historical record, calling the ruling "the worst self-inflicted wound in the court's history."

David Garrow, a legal historian, said lawyers on both sides of the abortion debate have disregarded the practical reality that the procedure was commonplace even in states where it was banned when the 14th Amendment was added and that criminal prosecutions were rare.

"If you wanted to argue that abortion is deeply rooted in American history you don't argue about state statutes," Garrow said. "You argue about the evidence of demographic reality."
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
Close
0:00
0:00
Don’t Dismiss China’s Peacemaking Bid
I have a dream, MLK inspiring speech
Father obliterates council members following viral TikTok of biological male masturbating in women’s bathroom..
Aretha Franklin, Marvis Staples - Oh Happy Day
China and Brazil have signed a new deal that will allow them to trade in their own currencies, bypassing the US dollar as an intermediary
BVI Freedom Song
Elon Musk and Others Call for Pause on A.I., Citing ‘Profound Risks to Society’
Billy Preston - You Can't Beat God Giving (Live)
Nashville style execution
VIRGIN ISLANDS REGGAE CARIBBEAN RIDDIMZ
“We've had evidence prior to the pandemic that masks were largely ineffective at preventing community transmission of influenza “
Oh Happy Day Edwin Hawkins - Anthony Brown w FBCG Combined Choir
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz:
'Stand by Me' performed by Karen Gibson and The Kingdom Choir
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz rejects being labeled a "billionaire"
National Anthem of the British Virgin Islands - Oh, Beautiful Virgin
Jamie Dimon is being deposed over JPMorgan Chase role in Epstein lawsuits
Hello Dolly
This is how an electric car saves all the energy that he would have spent if he had lived 50 years longer.
for KING & COUNTRY - Amen (Reborn) [feat. Lecrae & The WRLDFMS Tony Wi
Brand new security footage has just been released to the public showing the Active shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale drove to Covenant Church School in her Honda Fit this morning, parked, and shot her way into the building
Bob Marley - Get Up Stand Up
Social Media censoring users for saying the true
Yes He Can
Smart Iranian fashion designer teaching dummy TV anchors lesson about reality
What A Friend We Have In Jesus
AMERICA, 2023
Unforgettable
U.S. charges FTX's Bankman-Fried with paying $40 million bribe
Touch The Hem Of His Garment
Fallen 'Crypto King' Who Owes Millions to Investors Was Kidnapped and Tortured
The Lord's Prayer
Regulators blame social media for SVB's rapid collapse: 'Complete game changer'
THE GOD MOVEMENT...BEAUTIFUL BVI
AOC explains why she opposes banning TikTok
Siyahamba
UK: Humza Yousaf replaces Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and first minister in Scotland
Ray Charles And The Voices Of Jubilaton, Oh, Happy Day
In a dramatic U-turn against His Government: Judicial Reform Legislation Must Be Halted, Says Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant
Ramblin' Rose
Gordon Moore, a co-founder of Intel Corporation, died at 94
Protoje - Who Knows ft. Chronixx
Powell: Silicon Valley Bank was an 'outlier'
Pressure - Virgin Islands Nice
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
Phil Wickham - House Of The Lord
NYPD is setting up barricades outside Manhattan Criminal Court ahead of Trump arrest.
My God Is Real (Yes, God Is Real)
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
The Lion King Circle of Life by LEBO M. — LIVE at the HAVASI Symphonic
Home Secretary Suella Braverman tours potential migrant housing in Rwanda as asylum deal remains mired in legal challenges
Louis Armstrong - When The Saints Go Marching In
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
Kanye West Sunday Service - hallelujah, salvation, and glory
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Jonathan Nelson - I Believe (Island Medley
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
From The Virgin Islands Sqad Up
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
Common, John Legend - Glory
Jeremy Hunt insists his Budget will get young parents and over-50s back into work
Anthony Evans vs. Jesse Campbell - If I Ain't Got You
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
I have a dream, MLK inspiring speech
Nashville police officer, and a female driver shooting one another
Aretha Franklin, Marvis Staples - Oh Happy Day
TRUMP: "Standing before you today, I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent World War III."
BVI Freedom Song
Mexican President Claims Mexico is Safer than the U.S.
Billy Preston - You Can't Beat God Giving (Live)
A brief banking situation report
VIRGIN ISLANDS REGGAE CARIBBEAN RIDDIMZ
Lady bites police officer and gets instantly reaction
Oh Happy Day Edwin Hawkins - Anthony Brown w FBCG Combined Choir
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
'Stand by Me' performed by Karen Gibson and The Kingdom Choir
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
National Anthem of the British Virgin Islands - Oh, Beautiful Virgin
Good news: The U.S. government is now guaranteeing all deposits, held by, Silicon Valley Bank, and the funds are available as of today
Hello Dolly
Silicon Valley Bank exec was Lehman Brothers CFO
for KING & COUNTRY - Amen (Reborn) [feat. Lecrae & The WRLDFMS Tony Wi
In a potential last-ditch effort, HSBC is considering a rescue deal to save Silicon Valley Bank UK from insolvency
Bob Marley - Get Up Stand Up
BBC Director General, Tim Davie, has apologized, but not resigned, yet, following the disruption of sports programmes over the weekend
Yes He Can
A Mississippian man, who was once considered a “ticking time bomb,” has lost a whopping 165 kilograms! What motivated this incredible transformation?
What A Friend We Have In Jesus
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
Unforgettable
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
Touch The Hem Of His Garment
City officials in Berlin announced on Thursday that all swimmers at public pools will soon be allowed to swim topless
The Lord's Prayer
Fitness scam
THE GOD MOVEMENT...BEAUTIFUL BVI
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Siyahamba
A primitive judge in Australia sparked outrage when he told a breastfeeding woman to leave his courtroom for being “a distraction"
Ray Charles And The Voices Of Jubilaton, Oh, Happy Day
×