News of Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring from the Supreme Court of the United States sent shockwaves through the nation.

Reproductive rights, including access to birth control and safe abortion procedures, have been around for as long as we can remember—and many of us have taken them for granted. But now they are at risk.

Justice Kennedy was often considered SCOTUS’ swing vote, especially on issues regarding abortion and reproductive rights. Because of this, the Supreme Court bench will have a decidedly conservative leaning if Trump’s pick for nomination, Brett Kavanaugh, is confirmed by Senate vote.

Brett Kavanaugh is widely known for his belief that the President of the United States should not undergo investigations while in the Oval Office—he insinuates it is too stressful and creates too much tension in the White House. Coincidence that Trump nominated Kavanaugh for the seat while undergoing Russian-hacking-related investigations?

Kavanaugh has been quiet recently on abortion issues despite his previous statements. Last fall, the appeals court voted to allow an undocumented 17-year-old in an immigration detention center to have an abortion. Kavanaugh dissented, saying that the ruling placed an “undue burden” on the courts and that it was a “radical extension of the Supreme Court’s abortion jurisprudence.”

If Kavanaugh is confirmed, Roe v. Wade will likely be overturned by a 5-4 majority. While this doesn’t mean that abortions will suddenly be made illegal nationwide, it does mean that women’s rights to abortions will be subject to the discretion of state legislatures. For example, Iowa’s “Heartbeat Bill” prohibits abortions when the fetus has a detectable heartbeat, which typically occurs between 6 and 8 weeks. Exceptions are made for rape, incest and medical emergency. However, this time period is before many women are even aware that they are pregnant. In turn, this bill effectively bans abortions in Iowa.

As described by Dr. Jamila Perritt, an obstetrician and gynecologist and activist for sexual health, reproductive rights and social justice, "The likelihood that an individual can miss her period, get a pregnancy test, then make an appointment to see an abortion provider, take time off of work if she's working, find child care for her other children, get in to get her abortion and have all of that done prior to a six-week time period is absolutely unrealistic and unreasonable.

In addition to laws like Iowa’s Heartbeat Bill, many states have “trigger laws” in place. These are abortion-criminalizing laws that were written in the pre-Roe v. Wade era. Since these laws were nullified with Roe’s passage, many of these state legislatures never had a reason to reevaluate these laws, even “liberal” states like Massachusetts. The potential repeal of Roe should urge states to adopt more protective and defensive laws.

When abortions are criminalized, women don’t stop having abortions. The procedures are instead forced underground, where they are made unsafe, inaccessible, and costly. We cannot return to an era of coat-hanger abortions, in which women are told that our bodies are not really our own but mere baby-carrying vessels—puppets on the fingers of tiny hands.

In addition, many women are sharing their abortion stories with #oneinfour, with the goal of normalizing getting abortions and raising awareness for how common the procedure is. You can also call your senators and tell them to vote NO in order to block Kavanaugh’s nomination, and donate to groups like Planned Parenthood, National Network of Abortion Funds, NARAL Pro-Choice America, All Above All, Lady Parts Justice, and All-Options PRC.

Why can’t they all just be like RBG?

By Victoria Wang

Duke Student, resident globe-trotter and founder of getting foreign food posts trending