On January 22, 1973, the legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court, ruled that unduly restrictive state regulation of abortion is unconstitutional. This made abortion legal in the United States, granting the mother the right to abort the fetus. In the state that we live in; California, it is legal for a woman to have an abortion without parental or guardians consent or permission from her partner. If a woman finds herself in a situation where she may be considering getting an abortion, if she goes to Advocates for Youthshe will learn that only five states require parental consent and notification and eleven require only notification to the parents. Twenty-one states require the involvement of a parent regardless if the minor is a victim of incest. In thirty-six states, minors are allowed an abortion with no parental consent through the judicial bypass. Judicial bypass is the state’s requirement for a minor to provide evidence that they are mature and informed enough on abortion to make their own decision or prove that parental knowledge would not be in their best interests.

Currently, one of the most controversial conversations has been brought up nationally pleasing and upsetting many Americans. On February 10, 2022, the 1st draft from Justice Samuel Alito was circulated and eventually was leaked to the public and can be found on P0litico. Alito’s stance claims that Roe was wrong all those years ago and that America was wrong to provide a right to a woman to have an abortion because there is no direct mention of them in the Constitution. The immediate impact of the ruling as drafted in February would be to end a half-century guarantee of federal constitutional protection of abortion rights and allow each state to decide whether to restrict or ban abortion.

If Roe v Wade is overturned, then it will be up to the states on whether or not abortion will be legal in that state or not. They will decide the criteria, requirements, and restrictions regarding a woman having one or not. This means that it is expected that abortion will not be allowed in roughly half of the country. This means that if Roe v Wade is overturned, the United States will become the fourth country in the world to ban abortions since the 1990s.

Ever since the draft was leaked, thousands of Americans across the country have been outraged leading to protests and riots. Women and men marched the streets of Seattle, Portland, Boston, Sacramento CA, Denver, Houston, St. Louis, and Hartford. Along with all of these men and women, there are signs that are held up in the air stating “laws off my body”, “keep bans off my body”, “my body my choice” etc. All people are trying to fight the considered ban on abortions. However, aside from all those who disagree with the Supreme Court’s likely decision, there are those who feel this is a great thing.

Those who are pleased with this decision hold the belief that abortion is morally wrong and is killing an innocent baby. There have been protests by students who are pro-life protested and held up signs outside of the Supreme Court building stating “I am the post roe generation”.

Now the country must wait to see what the Supreme Court will decide, as everyone eagerly waits to learn what the fate of our nation is going to be.