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Section. 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for a crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Amendment XIII.5

It could well be argued that a woman forced to carry an unwanted pregnancy to term is in involuntary servitude to the fetus. Her body is no longer her own.

SECTION 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. Article XIV. SECTION 1

How interesting.

All persons born, not just conceived or still in the womb - but born, are citizens.
A fetus is not therefore how can it be allowed any rights?

How can a Court so deprive citizens, only those that are female, of their 'privileges'. It is discriminatory. Only women may have their bodies controlled by the State.

The democrats in congress rolled over when they allowed the appointments of Alito and Roberts to stand.

What will happen?

To some degree it is up to, as some have written here, God.

That is, will God let the Court remain as it is at the moment or will the next President have the opportunity to fill vacant seats, whether through illness, death, or retirement?

Those who want Roe v Wade overturned forget also that this would mainly return the issue to the individual states. They cannot criminalize more than the federal rule but can legalize less or none.

Return with me to the olden days of yore, when abortion was illegal and all was well with the world.

That is what some writers think of those days. They have equated abortion rights with the downfall of American society, more crime, less money paid into social security. (I did not write that -another Helium writer did.)

It was fun in them there times. Women who did not or could not go through with a pregnancy sat home and forced themselves to let the fetus grow, even when it sometimes meant their mental/physical lives were at stake.

Well, that's an overstatement.

You could go before the Court, before a man who knew nothing about the intricacies or medical and emotional issues. He would decide if you had to go through with the pregnancy or if you received his blessing to have it ended, i.e. which woman's life was worth more than the potential child.

Which takes me to the Church.

There is one up the street from me. They often have, and don't ask me why some days abortion is sad and a tragedy and some days it is not an issue at all, crosses and a statement about how many 'lives' were taken through abortion.

I would like to ask them, but have not: how many in your parish, in your diocese, in the Catholic Church have adopted babies? How many have put money into taking care of pregnant women in need of housing, food, shelter?

The future is clear.

If the Court does not become more moderate, does not rely on religious beliefs when writing their opinions (sounds like Iraq, Iran, and so on) then Roe V Wade may be overturned.

And who benefits the most from that?

The answer is easy.

The makes of wire coathangers come out the winners, just as they did in the past when a woman was forced to turn to self-help to terminate a pregnancy.

Learn more about this author, Carol Levy.
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