by Brenda Bowers

Created on: April 15, 2008

The law giving women the right to abort their unborn children (Roe vs Wade) has been the one most controversial Supreme Court judgments ever made. It is an issue on which opponents can find no middle point on which they can compromise. The fetus is dead or it is left to live; there is no in between! I have often considered what would happen if Roe vs Wade was overturned. This now is not a wholly impossible event given the current make up of the Court. If the next President is a anti-abortionist it becomes even more possible because the liberal judges are getting old and will probably retire during the next President's term thus giving him the right of naming the successor. As the Court is made up now there are only two Judges who can be counted on to uphold Roe vs Wade, four who would most certainly be against and the rest are not certain but probably in the anti group.

After doing some research I discovered that abortion would still be rather handily available regardless of the best the anti-abortionists can do. Here is the assessment of just what might happen:

The Center for Reproductive Rights feels confident that some states that do not at present have bans against abortion will institute them if the Supreme Court gives them the authority. There are 21 states that are likely to outlaw abortion immediately based on the make up of the state's legislature. These states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Abortion however is likely to remain legal in many states. And perhaps these states will pass more specific laws to protect the right of a woman to have an abortion. There are already 7 states with stronger laws protecting the right to abortion. These laws were enacted to guard against the overturn of Roe vs. Wade and to restrict anti-abortion demonstrations. It is also a pretty sure bet at least 20 more states are likely to preserve the right to have an abortion with stronger and more specific laws if Roe vs Wade is overturned. These states are: Alaska, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and Wyoming.

This leaves only 2 states that may or may not accept an overturn of Roe vs. Wade and go along with the federal laws.

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