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Mike Pence, a staunch opponent of abortion, gave a speech in Washington on November 30, 2021.
Getty Images via AFP
The right to abortion could soon “be forgotten” in American history, hoped Tuesday the former vice-president Mike Pence in front of an audience of anti-abortion activists also convinced that their time has come.
On the eve of a crucial US Supreme Court hearing, former number two Donald Trump, known for his Christian faith and ultra-conservative values, displayed rare optimism during a speech in Washington .
“I believe with all my heart that tomorrow or in the near future the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade, ”he said, referring to the historic decision of the high court which, in 1973, guaranteed the right of American women to have an abortion. “It will not be a surprise but the culmination of 50 years” of struggle, he added, calling on anti-abortion activists to remain mobilized: “We did not fight so long (…) for us stop near the finish line! ”
Part of the American population, especially on the right and in religious circles, never accepted the 1973 decision and fought a protean fight to have it annulled. On the ground, opponents of abortion have mobilized near clinics to try to discourage women wishing to terminate a pregnancy and doctors performing these interventions.
At the same time, in conservative and religious states, mainly located in the south and center of the country, lawmakers have passed hundreds of restrictive laws, some of which contradict the Supreme Court’s case law, in order to provide it with an opportunity to come back. on the subject.
The last brick of the building was laid by Republican President Donald Trump who, with the help of senators from his party, brought three judges known for their anti-abortion positions to the Supreme Court, bringing to six out of nine magistrates the conservative majority of the instance.
“The good moment”
In this configuration, Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List, said Tuesday she was “very confident” for the outcome of the debates, which will be held Wednesday in the temple of American law.
The Nine Wise Men will consider a Mississippi law that prohibits abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, about two months before the Supreme Court’s limit for when the fetus becomes viable, around 22 to 24 weeks gestation.
“We cannot know what is going on in the heads of the judges, but the fact that they have accepted such a file”, while nothing obliges them to do so, “shows that they are ready to do something with it. Roe v. Wade, ”she told AFP:“ Either they will cancel it, or they will drastically limit its scope. ” And for her, it will be the end of years of a “frustrating” struggle: conservative states – which cover about half of the country – will be able to pass laws banning abortions and they will no longer be blocked in court.
Rebecca Downs, 30, ten of whom campaigned against abortion, was more cautious. “You can never know what the Court will do,” she noted, recalling the “defeats” suffered by her movement in recent years. “It was not the right time, but if there is a right time, given the current composition of the Court, it must be now,” she added with a touch of excitement.
“It is time for abortion to disappear,” added Cindy Collins, who tried to attend Mike Pence’s speech, but could not enter for lack of accreditation. Regardless, Wednesday, this Louisiana resident will be before the Supreme Court to make her voice heard. “And I think we are at a time when the judges are more ready to listen to us …”
AFP
Posted today at 12:58 a.m.
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