Following the latest Supreme Court decision to strike down Roe vs. Wade, we asked readers their thoughts on the issue, and what it means for the country, moving forward.

 

“I believe it’s unjust. I kind of see it’s been a long time coming, especially with the nomination of [former President Donald] Trump, and how he appointed three Supreme Court justices who are conservative, so I think America is regressing, honestly. I feel we have a lot of work to do and it’s time we start listening to the people, start listening to women, and start prioritizing woman and actually care for children, because if you look at the foster care system, if you look at formula, if you look at education, you know a lot of these entities are underfunded. How can you force women to have children if you’re not even helping the children that are here now? I believe Justice [Clarence] Thomas was already talking away contraception, gay marriage relationships, so I think abortion rights are just the beginning and I feel it’s just a catalyst for what is to come in the future and unfortunately, it’s not looking good.”

Lexi Jackson,

Allerton

“Roe v. Wade being overthrown by the Supreme Court is an injustice and needs to be stopped, and we cannot go back. This has been going on for 50 years since Roe v. Wade, even prior to that, and too many women have died as a result of trying to get an abortion because of a variety of reasons. Now it’s crazy; they’re talking about if someone has a miscarriage…all of that kind of stuff. I mean, it’s outrageous! And then, they’re going to work on birth control. If you can’t use birth control, then if you get pregnant… Men need to be responsible as well, and I won’t say what I think. As far as women with darker skin, younger women, poor people, they can’t afford to do anything else if they can’t afford to have children. It’s like the government, as far as having an abortion…… but once a child is born and somebody can’t afford to support that child for a variety of reasons, then they can be put in jail, and the government doesn’t help, it’s crazy.”

Bobbi Siegelbaum,

Riverdale

 

“Yes, we saw them organizing amongst those who really wanted to abolish abortion rights, and they are very effective organizers. So, what we have to do is we have to out-organize them, and we have to organize ourselves for the next 50 years so that we can get this put back as a right for all humans, not just for those of us in this country, but for everybody to have the right to make their choices for themselves and their own bodies. They’re going to continue to do this and what we have to know is, if you go back 400-years, this country has been working toward freedom of human rights with a long, long, long history, and so what we have to do is recognize that, and the only way that these victories are going to be won is by organizing locally, at the state level, and organizing to elect the people that we want to see in office that can stand for human rights. I wish I could say it’s going to be just a year, but it’s not. It’s going to be a long time. My grandchildren are going to be fighting this and I don’t like that. I would wish that they didn’t have to. I would wish that they could spend most of their energy on other struggles, but this is an important one.”

Margery Freeman,

Riverdale

 

“I’m very upset with what’s happened with Roe vs. Wade and I don’t think the judges or government should have a say on a woman’s rights. Whether they give birth or not, they’re in situations, and even in cases of rape and incest, they’re going to stop it [abortion] and that’s outrageous. Like they said, it’s been 50 years that it’s been in place, and now these conservative judges decide this topic and it’s not their right to do so. They’ll have to protest, and they’ll have to go somewhere else, to another state. They’ll have to fight the system. They can’t allow older, white male conservatives to make the decisions for women, because they’ll never be in that situation, and it’s outrageous. I hear somewhere, I don’t know what state, that not even [with] rape will they be able to get an abortion; it’s crazy! Donald Trump was the cause of this by selecting these judges, and when you have the money, you can go around the laws and make things work. If they suspend this [the right to abortion] and people will be going the illegal way to do these things, they could get sick and die from this. There has to be exceptions, and they should have their own choice.”

Wilfredo Rivera,

Fordham Manor

“I’ve kind of gotten used to the whole idea of women’s rights and I was surprised to see that it was overturned, and now it’s going to be up to the states, but for my mom, unfortunately, when I was little, that was never an option. By the time my mom was 19, she already had three kids, and I remember she gave me ‘the birds and the bees’ talk when I was 15, washing dishes, and she said, ‘You’ll never get an abortion.’ She, like, punched me in the stomach. She was, like, that’s not how we do things. So, I’ve kind of had that drilled into my head already, that it’s no good. I always vote. I’m somebody that feels if you don’t communicate, how is somebody supposed to hear you? Voting is really one of our only ways to do that.”

Crystal Cruz,

Norwood