AANHPI women alarmed at SCOTUS' draft calling for overturning Roe v Wade

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Asian American women protest Texas' restrictions on abortion rights.

UPDATED: 2 a.m., May 4, 2021

A leaked draft of a Supreme Court majority opinion has sent shockwaves across the nation, including the AANHPI communities.

Drafted by conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the historic Roe v. Wade decision "was egregiously wrong from the start.” 

The draft, which was released Tuesday, was confirmed as authentic by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who said, "Although the document described in yesterday’s reports is authentic, it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case.”

“This opinion speaks to the unprecedented and alarming nature of the assault on our reproductive rights. Banning access to abortion care further jeopardizes the well-being and financial stability for millions of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women and families," said Sung Yeon Choimorrow, executive director fo the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum.

The draft, which was circulated among the nine Justices Feb. 10 ruled in favor of Mississippi in the closely watched case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, over that state’s attempt to ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

"It's really quite a radical decision," President Biden said. “It's a fundamental shift in American jurisprudence."

"Every other decision based on the notion of privacy is thrown into question," Biden told reporters.

The President said the same arguments Alito used in the draft could also raise questions to other issues not specifically mentioned in the Constitution including the right of gays and lesbians to marry, interracial marriage, as well as constitutional protections for birth control.

If adopted as drafted in February the SCOTUS would end a half-century guarantee of federal constitutional protection of abortion rights and allow each state to decide whether to restrict or ban abortion. As of today, 24 states have similarly worded anti-abortion legislation in the pipeline.

Most observers believe the majority of the activist conservative SCOTUS will weaken Roe v. Wade with the Republican-appointed conservative Justices in the majority and the three Democratic appointees in the minority.

“The inescapable conclusion is that a right to abortion is not deeply rooted in the Nation’s history and traditions,” wrote Alito.

“It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives,” the justice wrote.

“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” he writes

"Roe cannot and must not fall. The path to proper abortion care is already arduous for AAPI communities – filled with language barriers, cultural stigmas, and low rates of insurance for our most vulnerable members," Choimorrow continued in her statement.

"Roe ensures a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion," said Vice President Kamala Harris. "It also, at its root, protects the fundamental right to privacy. What is clear is that opponents of Roe want to punish women and take away their rights to make decisions about their own bodies. Republican legislators in states across the country are weaponizing the use of the law against women.

"The rights of all Americans are at risk," Harris said. "If the right to privacy is weakened, every person could face a future in which the government can potentially interfere in the personal decisions you make about your life. This is the time to fight for women and for our country with everything we have."

In September, 2021, a “friend of the court” brief, NAPAWF and Asian Americans Advancing Justice, representing 29 community and civil rights organizations, as well as bar associations, was filed representing the interests of Asian American and Pacific Islander women .

“We know that abortion access is already difficult for AAPI women. The cultural stigma and shame that comes with talking about abortion, let alone getting one, is compounded with significant language and economic barriers that can make accessing abortion care a harrowing and terrifying experience,” said Choimorrow when the amicus curie was filed.

“This is especially true for AAPI women who are over-represented in low-paying, service jobs and are more likely to not have health care coverage to begin with.” In 2020, AAPI women experienced the highest rates of long-term unemployment among minority women since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Given that AAPIs are among the fastest-growing populations nationwide with nearly two-thirds of the population being foreign-born, we have grave concerns about the impact of this case on our community,” said Niyati Shah, Advancing Justice – AAJC’s Director of Litigation. “The anti-immigrant sentiment will only further stoke the fear of AAPI women that they will face adverse consequences regardless of their immigration status.”

Overturning Roe v. Wade will effectively end legal abortion in at least 24 states, several of which are home to large and growing AAPI communities. For instance, the AAPI population in states with abortion restrictions or bans, such as Georgia, Texas, and North Carolina, has grown 138%, 128%, and 154%, respectively, since 2000. The rolling back of reproductive rights by banning access to abortion care will jeopardize the well-being and financial stability for millions of AAPI women and families.

TWITTER

California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined San Francisco activists protesting the
prospective Supreme Court ruling Roe v Wade.

After the draft was published by Politico, spontaneous protests occurred across the nation including in front of the Supreme Court in Washington DC.

The amicus brief filed last Fall emphasizes the unconstitutionality imposed by pre-viability abortion bans and the need to protect the constitutional right for continued access to abortion care for AAPI women. The barriers to safe reproductive care will become even more profound if Mississippi’s pre-viability abortion ban is upheld due to laws that unfairly target pregnant AAPI women for criminal prosecution.

A series of studies by CUNY's Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy found that roughly one-fifth of pregnant Asian Americans may seek an abortion, a rate comparable to that of non-Hispanic white women.

A separate study suggest that this CUNY's findings may be an underestimate. For example, the Center for American Progress contends that as many as one-third of pregnancies in the AAPI community may end in abortion.

Another study found that the AAPI community is the only racial community in which abortion usage hasn’t decreased in the last 15 years.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views frm an AAPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.