Roe v. Wade: When the Supreme Court took away the right to choose.

Norma McCorvey, formally known as "Jane Roe", with attorney Gloria Allred, right, in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 25, 1989.GREG GIBSON / AFP - Getty Images

On June 24, 2022, millions of women in the United States woke up with fewer rights than they had the day before. With a single decision, the Supreme Court has erased 50 years of history: they overturned Roe v. Wade, the ruling guaranteeing the constitutional right to abortion. But what did this ruling say? Why was it abolished and what is happening today?

Jane Roe, pseudonym used for Norma McCorvey, an American woman born in Louisiana. She lived a troubled adolescence and at 16 she married a violent man with whom she had two children and was pregnant with a third. While pregnant, she was contacted by a team of lawyers who decided to take her case to court. The attorney representing Texas was Henry Menasco Wade.

In 1972, the case reached the United States Supreme Court, which issued its ruling on January 22, 1973. The judges were asked whether the Federal Constitution recognized a woman's right to have an abortion even without health problems for herself or the fetus. The decision was taken with 7 judges in favor and 2 against. This decision was based on a new interpretation of the 14th Amendment which protects the rights to privacy and personal freedom.

But in 2022 all this was undone. Why?

In Mississippi, one of the most conservative states, there was an abortion clinic named Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In 2018, Mississippi passed a law that made abortions no longer possible after 15 weeks even in cases of rape or incest. This law is called the “Gestational Age Act.”

However this directly contradicted Roe v. Wade which allowed abortion up to approximately 24 weeks, so the clinic sued the state. So in 2022, the Supreme Court, now mostly composed of a conservative majority - 6 out of 9 - upheld the Gestational Age Act and not only that: they completely overturned Roe v. Wade.

Simply put, the judges decided that abortion is no longer a constitutional right and each state can decide whether to allow it or not. Today, abortion is completely banned in 14 states and severely restricted in another 7. In total, in 21 states women have lost access to a fundamental right. Those who can afford it can travel to another state to access abortion but many cannot. This forces women to resort to unsafe methods. Even doctors risk prison for performing abortions even in the most delicate cases.

Law should protect, not control. And today, in several states, women's bodies are a political battleground. This leaves us with the question: what kind of democracy is it where rights are so easily taken away.