Up To Date With Ethan Callender Entry 21: Lone Star Review

As of September 1st, an insidious new law has taken effect in Texas. This law effectively bans abortion in the state only six weeks into pregnancy, with no exceptions. Normally, statutes like that would get blocked by the courts, but Texas and its governor, Greg Abbott, did things differently. Rather than make it a criminal ban, which would inevitably be struck down as unconstitutional, they made illegal abortions a civil violation. This means that abortion providers and anyone else who ‘aids and abets’ the procedure could be sued for upwards of $10,000. This was possibly done to make the law harder for the courts to throw out, and so far, it has succeeded in staying on the books.

However, I am going to try and explain why this law is completely abhorrent morally, as well as dubious legally. For one thing, any abortion law with a ban at six weeks of pregnancy is going to be nearly total in practice. This is because six weeks in, an unplanned pregnancy, which accounts for over 45% of all pregnancies, may still be unnoticed. Granted, the ban is when an embyonic/fetal heartbeat is detected, so it won’t always be at six weeks, but it will generally be in that timeframe. After all, pregnancy tests are not always at the ready for everybody who can get pregnant. Say, for example, if it’s a young couple just experimenting with themselves. Any conception that comes from that would hopefully be unplanned, so if the couple lives in Texas, they may be stuck keeping the baby by the time they are made aware of it. That’s only one of many examples where the deadline could be missed before the pregnancy is even known.

When talking about the moral and legal arguments, there is also the fact that religious arguments are being used to justify the law, as with any other “pro-life” statute. Make no mistake, this possibly violates the First Amendment due to the lack of separation between church and state. Every American with a decent education would know that the First Amendment to our Constitution protects freedoms of speech and religion. As a result, any American with any critical thinking skills should be concerned that the “pro-life” movement is based almost entirely on religious dogma. After all, America was not intended to be run by the f***ing Bible. We have a Constitution, and it exists for a reason. One of those reasons is to prevent charlatans, such as Gov. Abbott, from imposing what they believe to be God’s will on everybody, even those who don’t believe in any higher power. What I’m saying is that this law, and any other like it, violates the Constitution both via the Roe v. Wade decision and the fact that church dogma is being brought into state affairs. 

Speaking of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that gave American women the right to abort an unwanted pregnancy is under attack. Granted, the legal case for Roe is built on a right to privacy that is not explicitly mentioned in our Constitution, but inferred in many amendments regardless. As a result, the only thing preventing pro-life members of the courts from striking it down is fifty years of judicial precedent. Judicial precedent is powerful when applied, and it has led to many rights being protected that otherwise wouldn’t exist. These rights include controversial topics such as burning the flag (Texas v. Johnson), judicial review of existing laws (Madbury v. Madison), and of course, abortion (Roe v. Wade). 

However, when it came time for the Supreme Court to apply those powers in regards to this law, the five conservative justices just shrugged it off for now. Meanwhile the three liberal justices (and one “moderate”) dissented, applying their judicial powers to uphold precedent. Sure, judicial precedent can have its downsides and have to be overturned, such as with Dred Scott or Plessy v. Ferguson. However, it is by-and-large an essential tool in the judicial branch’s arsenal. Therefore, fifty years of precedent being practically overturned overnight is going to send shockwaves. 

Also, of all the laws to shrug off, why did the Supreme Court let this one slide? After all, similar bulls*** “heartbeat” bills have been blocked by the courts time and time again, so why did this one break through that barrier? The answer to me is simple: The conservative Justices have no idea what this particular law entails. It empowers civilians to sue literally anyone who assisted someone in getting an abortion for what basically amounts to a bounty without the killing. The victim of the lawsuit could be the doctor who performed it, a mother who funded it, or even the f***ing Uber driver. This law is targeting even the most circumstantial involvement in the abortion process and punishing that with a $10,000+ lawsuit. I can’t think of any other word to describe that but degenerate.

Finally, I ask this question: Haven’t Texans suffered enough recently? From the power grid collapse in February to the continued COVID-19 pandemic, Texas has already had it rough this year. They did not need the strictest, most insidious abortion law in the nation added on to that pile. By the way, remember when we all laughed at Ted Cruz for flying to Cancun during the power crisis? I think that shameful display best shows what is going on in Texas’ state politics. The GOP, the state’s dominant party, is showing complete apathy towards their constituents. Gov. Abbott is neglecting his state, and the state’s Republican establishment think they’ll be in control forever. Judging by recent events, I would hope something changes, and soon. Otherwise, Texas is going to have the lone star on its flag be its average rating on Yelp. No matter the fate of this law, Texas deserves better than this.