On The Overturning of Roe v. Wade

For the first time in my young life, I feel well and truly hopeless. The recent Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade is devastating, but it’s also just the most recent blow to vulnerable Americans in a country split into seemingly permanent fissures. Our politicians fight for laws that benefit themselves and the rich backing them, but are shielded from the consequences. So, who experiences these often life-altering ramifications? Our masses.

For instance, even though Roe v. Wade was recently overturned, wealthy women will always have access to abortion regardless of their state. The rich can flout the laws of this land by merely flying to another state, or even country, for procedures banned in their home states. They can use their power and influence to avoid the obstacles everyone else faces — like wages lost from work missed while traveling, paying for child care, and so much more.

This is hardly the first example of the rich evading consequences through power. Take Jeffrey Epstein, who managed to groom over 100 victims in more than 20 years. His connections with high-profile politicians and his large fortune helped conceal his crimes for decades, allowing him to take advantage of more and more women.

Until now, I have subconsciously held onto the belief that at the end of the day, our stars and stripes would stand tall and brave in calls against injustice. As my immigrant family always assured me, to wake up in America was a blessing beyond fathoming. “Anything is possible here,” my father would promise me. “We are in the best country in the world. A country where anyone can do anything, as long as they have the drive.” The third-grade version of me would listen raptly, in awe of the stunning picture he painted: a proud, defiant flag, bravely waving in the face of those who would stand in the way of opportunity. A flag that would protect me, guide me, and love me as its own, even if I had roots across foreign waters.

'Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!'

So reads Emma Lazarus’ Petrarchan sonnet on the Statue of Liberty. These words empowered me, encouraged me, and saved me as the daughter of immigrants. I buried myself in American history, hoping to find my place in the nation I idolized. I felt validated as a child, reading about America standing as a democracy without the influence of the church.

But even so, I still noticed things that stood in the face of the so-called American dream. My parents came to this country out of the hope of escaping a tyrannical government and religious persecution, but I still faced constant ridicule, bullying, and harassment living in the Bible Belt as a young Muslim in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. If this country truly was not influenced by the church, why did the Pledge of Allegiance reference America as a “nation under God”? The phrase hardly seems to represent a separation of church and state.

Now, with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the truth is evident. It’s clear there is no real separation of church and state in American politics. Arguments against abortion predominantly come from a religious standpoint, and every single Supreme Court justice that voted in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade is heavily involved in their Christian faith. It’s not a coincidence that out of the 115 justices to have served on the Supreme Court, the vast majority have been Christian, and only five have been women and three have been people of color. The lack of diversity in our nation’s highest court of law inevitably led to the unethical overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Of course, Americans will seek abortion no matter the laws in their state — multiple studies have shown that. But, in the wake of this ruling, the number of unsafe abortions will surely rise. The criminalization of abortion will ultimately discourage those who need medical help from seeking it. Our foster care system is already overpopulated, but if we force people to give birth, many will surely turn to these institutions out of a lack of other options. Ultimately, overturning Roe v. Wade means subjecting even more children to a lower quality of life — a sad irony of a movement that claims to be “pro-life.”

We have now become the very same country immigrants would flee from. Americans are subjected to constant mass murder, blatant racism in our streets, sexism in our laws, crippling numbers of debt, the highest incarceration rates in the world, rapidly rising homeless populations, and an untroubled, complacent government that protects nothing except its own interests.

The time to act was yesterday, but the second time is now. I have abandoned hope in our leaders, but I have not yet abandoned hope in our people. We must organize and mobilize on a larger scale than ever before. We must protest, unite, educate ourselves and others, and vote. This is a call-to-action to our lost, weary, battered, and broken: Join us in the fight for freedom.