This editorial is in response to “Jewish groups react strongly against SCOTUS leak to overturn Roe v. Wade,” a JNS article by Dmitriy Shapiro that The Chronicle ran on page 11 on May 12, 2022.
The interesting thing about the full page article about abortion in the May 12 edition of The Chronicle is that it failed even once to state what the issue before the Supreme Court is all about. It isn’t about abortion itself. What the Supreme Court is asked to determine is whether or not there is any wording in the Constitution or its amendments which prohibits states from regulating abortion. That’s it.
The Supreme Court is not deciding on the merits of abortion itself. If, under their ruling, all 50 states absolutely ban abortion, fine. If all 50 states permit abortion up to the moment of birth, fine. Those issues will be the purview of legislatures.
The abortion question, literally a life or death question, is one on which both sides are absolutely right, which is why it is so divisive. Those advocating abortion say “my body, my choice.” That’s certainly a defensible position, given the severe consequences to the life of any who not only endure the pain of childbirth but also the requirement of providing for the child once born.
Those who are pro-life say “no," the unborn child is not the woman’s body. It has a body of its own, it has completely different DNA from its mother. It is life itself, and once conceived, has a right to be born. They also point out that the woman does not have total choice over her body. She cannot sell any of her organs. That isn’t her choice either.
What needs to be done by those who prefer not to see Roe v. Wade overturned, rather than rehashing all the same old arguments, is to answer the question, “specifically, where in the Constitution is it written, or inferred, that states may not regulate or prohibit abortion?”
Lee Levin is from Overland Park, Kansas.
