Editor:
As of May 3, a leaked draft opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court would indicate that court may vote to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973 for the right of women to an abortion.
Since it is only a draft opinion and not a final decision by the supreme court, the American public will just have to wait to see what happens.
Women have been fighting for their rights going back to our colonial days. What stands, though, is when women were given the right to vote by the Ninetieth Amendment in 1920.
Other rights for women are the Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 and let’s not forget the issue at hand is the “Roe v. Wade” decision for the right of women to have an abortion in 1973.
Women have had to fight against sexual harassment in the workplace, with it now illegal in the workplace. These rights for women were hard-fought, especially for the right to vote, for it took many years and very hard work for the 19th Amendment to be ratified in our constitution and become law.
The timeline for women’s rights as said above goes back to colonial days. You as an individual can research this on your own and perhaps fully understand what American women had to deal with over rights they believe should have.
Because of this leaked draft opinion, there will be much discussion on this issue about the legal right or not for women to have an abortion. It comes down to individuals who believe they are either so-called pro-choice or pro-life.
There will many demonstrations on both sides of this issue across all 50 states. Already American citizens are in Washington, D.C., at the Supreme Court, making their voices heard.
What is extremely important is that this issue must be discussed, debated and be handled with mutual respect for all parties involved.
There must be no tolerance for violence as people express their views on this subject.
As we go forward as a nation on not only this issue, but also in future issues with high emotions by the American public, we must show mutual respect on both sides.
Our democracy demands that we as a nation show the world how we can and are able to handle complex issues.
Whatever happens in the coming days when the supreme court continues its work on this important and controversial issue, we as Americans must understand how our constitution works. It is and always will be a work in progress.
The ultimate decision by our supreme court to overturn Roe v. Wade or not is what we as a nation will need to abide by. This is the way we as a democracy work: “Of the people, by the people and for the people.”
Thomas Carter
Rio Rancho
