Let’s Talk About the End of Abortion Rights and Dobbs with Shannon McMinimee (Dobbs, Part 1)(July 5, 2022)

Crossing Division

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, issued by the US Supreme Court on June 24, 2022, sweeps away 50 years of legal precedent and healthcare protections to decide: “The Constitution does no confer a right to abortion. Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.” (Dobbs, slip opinion, syllabus).

Constitutional law expert Shannon McMinimee joins host Evelyn Lopez to talk through the Dobbs decision, explain why it is such a dramatic and disturbing change in how the courts consider Constitutional issues and personal rights, and discuss what other laws could face similar fates.

This cases changes everything about how we teach and understand the rule of law and the role of courts. As stated by Joanne Rosen of the Bloomberg School of Public Health: “What is extraordinary in this case is that, perhaps for the first time, the Supreme Court departed from precedent not to recognize a right it had previously neglected but rather to remove one it had previously protected. It deconstitutionalized a long standing right. This is an astonishing moment and an astonishing use of the court’s authority.” (Inside the ‘Dobbs’ decision | Hub (jhu.edu) )

Reading:

• The actual Dobbs decision (warning–it’s very long!): 19-1392 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (06/24/2022) (nationalreview.com)
• How Black Feminists Defined Abortion Rights | The New Yorker
• Abortion is banned in these states: Mapping abortion law changes by state. – The Washington Post

See also Dobbs Part 2 with Senator Yasmin Trudeau where we focus on Washington state abortion laws and plans to make them stronger.

If you have questions or comments, please get in touch!

Evelyn Lopez [e-mail] @True_Tacoma

Shannon McMinimee [e-mail] @SMMcMinimee