For Roe, Woe is Me

Today marks the anniversary of the decision in landmark supreme court case Roe v. Wade, which came to a close on this date in 1973. Headlining the festivities is the March for Life, sponsored by none other than the March for Life Fund, an organization created for the sole purpose of petitioning Roe v. Wade. Pro-life’s capture of the date for its own purposes, despite the Roe decision’s pro-choice leanings, is nothing short of impressive marketing, and it says a lot about the current state of U.S. abortion policies 37 years after Roe.

Abortion laws experienced a rebirth in the media throughout W’s White House residency as he expertly attempted to reverse (and largely succeeded) much of what Roe v. Wade had accomplished in the fight for women’s reproductive rights. The case mandated that a woman be permitted to abort her pregnancy until the “point at which the fetus becomes viable,” the job of defining “viable” also falling on the court as part of the decision. By the time Bush left office, there was a ban on federal funding for international family planning groups and stem cell research, not to mention a whole lot more abstinence only education. Despite those defeats, the pro-choice movement benefited heavily from the Bush backlash in terms of gaining support, but Obama’s reign has steered the issue back into murky water.

While Obama began his Presidency a very vocal advocate of women’s health reform, vowing to reverse much of W’s damage, the movement’s progress has remained stilted. In 2009, 14 states enacted pro-choice measures and 14 went anti-choice. In December, a bill was passed to increase funding for Title X and the United Nations Population Fund, both of which received major cutbacks under Bush, but the new health care legislation contains some seriously anti-choice measures. While Bush’s crimes against Roe were very public, however, Obama’s outwardly liberal administration creates a shield behind which pro-lifers can more easily navigate. Similar to the phenomenon of voters who believed Sarah Palin pro-choice on account of her gender, the public is being swayed into letting its guard down on abortion just as it needs to rally.

And that leaves Roe, 37 years later. The decision still stands, but the politics of politics have changed, substantially enough that the freedoms granted by Roe hang in the balance regardless of an overturn. Thus the significance of a March for Life or a misguided Palinite is tenfold when considering the movement’s two greatest allies: publicity and public action, which are of course its two greatest threats as well. The anniversary of an event such as Roe v. Wade is not only a time to consider how much progress has been made but to explore how best to proceed. If the pro-choice struggle is only emphasized in light of its past, making any serious headway will be slowgoing until the next big court case arrives, and here’s hoping it leaves one very overworked Roe out of its sights.