“Fighting attacks of the conservative right”: Forum to defend abortion rights held at Sydney University

By CHRISTINE LAI

In June, the Socialist Alternative held a forum at the University of Sydney discussing abortion rights in the US. Long-time activist and socialist Chloe Rafferty spoke at the event, discussing the attack of reproductive rights in the United States, and the strategies needed to defend the right to abortion.

Speakers at the forum discussed the need for abortion to be “safe, accessible and free” in response to a leak that uncovered the US Supreme Court’s plan to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade decision.

The constitutional right to abortion in the US was overturned by the Supreme court on June 24.

Texas clinic administrator says rights were already being repealed before Roe fell

In 2019, Texas passed a Heartbeat Act, banning abortion after 6 weeks (before most people are aware that they’re pregnant), and the Supreme Court refused to overturn this. This decision has left Texan women seeking to terminate pregnancies with an additional hurdle where they need to find resources to travel interstate or even cross the border to Mexico.

In her address, Rafferty mentioned Kathy Kleinfeld, administrator of Houston’s Women’s Reproductive Services who said women were facing difficulties obtaining abortions even before Roe V Wade was overturned.

When women with unwanted pregnancies arrive at their clinic, they are rushed to have an ultrasound hoping to scrape in just under the 6-week mark, which the majority don’t meet. Since the Heartbeat Act has come into effect, an average of nearly 1400 Texans travelled out of state to seek an abortion every month, and many through that barrier are forced to carry out an unwanted pregnancy alone.

“Across every demographic group and in every single state, a majority of people support abortion, and a majority oppose overturning Roe v Wade”, Rafferty said.

“The Supreme Court is insulated from popular opinion and there is no way for ordinary people to “retract someone once they’re instated,” she added.

Abortion access now heavily restricted in the USA

Currently, only 9 people, “ruling class justices”, sit on a lifetime appointed panel where the lives of millions of people are hung in the balance.

13 states in America have trigger laws in place which means that abortion bans came automatically into effect once the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, while 21 states are expected to enact anti-abortion legislation in the coming weeks.

As of June, the US has 6 states where there’s only 1 abortion clinic available per state. Working class women are much more burdened by the role they’re expected to play in the home, without the financial means to pay for services like childcare, aged care, or domestic work, while wealthy women have always been able to afford contraception or access clinics even when services weren’t legal.