Global Green News conducted an interview with Margaret Elisabeth, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States, to discuss the pressing issues of abortion rights. After the Supreme Court’s leaked draft to overturn the Roe vs Wade decision, the Green Party had strong opinions as to why this was happening.
Margaret explains the American Greens point of view, showing that there is both a social and institutional aspect leading to the decision to overturn Roe vs Wade. They continue to explain that this decision also threatens many other privacy rights.
Social Issues
The Supreme Court justices are not the only ones who want to restrict abortion rights. There is a big community that is “pro-life” and against abortion. Margaret explains that the primary reason for this is the decreasing birth rate.
There is a strong Christian community in the United States, and one of their values is to procreate. Abortion is a direct threat to this value. Nowhere in the bible is abortion talked about, therefore the religious community has interpreted abortion as human taking a human life, even though a fetus does not have a heartbeat until 6-7 weeks. As many know, the 6th commandment of the bible states “You shall not murder”. The Christian community therefore sees abortion as a sin.
Institutional Issues
Politicians also play an important role in this issue. While the Democrats usually fight for abortion rights, and Republicans don’t, the Greens argue that neither group actually wants to do anything about the issue. Both parties want abortion to remain a controversial topic to continue using it to get votes.
This is very problematic because it gives the impression that the politicians leading the United States do not truly care about their population’s rights and do not want to bring change. They would rather use controversial issues as leverage to get more votes.
“They are using this topic in a very a very cynical way to rial up their base and get turnout for the midterm election to have a dominant position in the 2024 potus campaign.”
Margaret Elisabeth
The Threat to All Privacy Rights
At the time of the interview, the Green Party of the US believed the fact that abortion could no longer be protected under privacy rights of the constitution, threatens many other rights that are interpreted in the same manner. The Justices of the Supreme Court have tried to downplay the connection between abortion rights and other privacy rights, but the Green Party argues they are both intricately linked.
All LGBTQI+ rights are interpreted the same way, under privacy rights and personal liberty laws of the constitution. This includes gay marriage, transgender rights, and many more. Margaret argues if the supreme court decides that abortion is no longer protected under privacy laws, what is to stop them from overturning all rights that were interpreted this way?
At the time of the interview, the Supreme Court Justices had not yet made a decision regarding the Roe vs Wade. Since then, the Court decided the constitutional right to abortion no longer exists. Since then, we have seen the world come together to fight against this decision, and stand up for women’s rights.
Although we may feel powerless, the Green Party urges the population to continue fighting to make our voices heard. If the populations voice is loud enough, politicians will need to listen.
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