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An abortion clinic encounters a variety of people during its daily business. Among them are the clients, most of whom are frantic to get the procedure done, and those who continuously fight against the procedures the clinic is doing. With the recent US Supreme Court opinion leak, abortion clinics are now hounded by the threat that their existence may possibly be cut short sooner than they anticipated.
The draft opinion that was leaked last week spread the fear that the Supreme Court could potentially overturn the 1973 Roe v Wade decision – the ruling that legalizes abortion across the US. “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the draft of the majority opinion, obtained by Politico magazine, a Washington, DC-based news outlet. The document was labeled “The 1st Draft” of the “Opinion of the Court.” The opinion referred to a Mississippi bid to bring back the state’s ban on abortion after the 15th week of pregnancy.
In Mississippi’s only abortion clinic, appointment slots were immediately filled as patients from all over the region, as well as from Tennessee and as far as Texas, drove to have the procedure done, before the potential overturning of the Supreme Court ruling on abortion as a constitutional right.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the document is a “disgraceful attack” on women’s right to choose. She further added that New York will never stop fighting for what is right.
“Women have always had abortions and always will. They need a safe place.” This was what Kathaleen Pittman’s mother told her when she started working at the Hope Medical Group for Women, an abortion clinic located in Louisiana. According to Ms. Pittman, there are now only three operational clinics in the state. There were 11 when she started working at Hope Medical Group.
Katie Quinonez, Executive Director of the Women’s Health Center of West Virginia in Charleston, shared her personal experience and how it motivated her to apply to the clinic. Among the challenges that they face are bills that ban abortion, anti-abortion activists, and a pro-life organization across the street. As someone who sees how critical abortion is, Katie is determined to keep the clinic open and provide the necessary help and resources to those that need them.
Dalton Johnson, owner of Alabama Women’s Center for Reproductive Alternatives, which is the only remaining clinic in Huntsville, shared that it took two difficult years to gain approval to operate the clinic. Despite this, he continues to run the clinic to help women. He also added, “It’s really just sad how so few people can make the choice for so many women.”
Will overturning Roe v Wade potentially pose a danger to the health of new mothers and their children? And will this further impede women’s rights? Debates and discussions continue to come up, as we wait to see if the Supreme Court decides to overthrow the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling.
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