US can no longer call itself free if the abortion ban returns

There is no condition more essential to democratic citizenship than a person’s control over her own body

A crowd of protesters gather outside the Supreme Court. Picture: AP Photo/Alex Brandon

It's the worst possible outcome: According to a draft majority opinion published by Politico, the US supreme court has voted to overturn Roe v Wade, along with its sister decision, Planned Parenthood v Casey. This momentous ruling will result in abortion becoming immediately illegal in an estimated 26 states when it is officially issued, likely next month.

The draft opinion, authored by Samuel Alito, the most rabidly hateful member of the court’s archconservative wing, will upend 50 years of precedent and undo a landmark ruling that has profoundly shaped legal doctrine, popular conceptions of the law, and millions of American lives.