Friday, April 20, 2007

Roberts Court right move, wrong for progressives

Women, progressive men, anyone who cares about social justice ought to take a deep breath and prepare for a very long haul.

The Roberts Court has clearly moved to the right -- and this can only spell disaster for women and our reproductive health, for anyone who cares about the separation of church and state, LGBT rights, and a plethora of other social justice issues.

The Washington Post reports:
The Supreme Court's decision signaling a significant reversal in the way it views government restrictions on abortion may also offer a glimpse of how the court under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. will proceed on other controversial issues this term and in the future.

The five justices in the majority came up with an opinion that delighted abortion opponents and outraged abortion rights activists -- and yet, in the view of the court, did not overturn a single precedent or seemingly contradictory ruling.
I disagree. This ruling was contradictory to any other ruling on abortion, because for the first time the Court has said there are no health exceptions for the woman. And what does THAT sound like.

Knowing that we can no longer count on the Court to protect us, we must turn a keen eye to politics. If you have never worked for a candidate, find one you like and volunteer on their campaign. If you have never registered to vote because you thought it didn't matter ... well, it does. If you are registered, but had too much to do to make it to the polls last time, plan to take the day off and go vote.

Everything is political.

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