Overturning Roe v. Wade could erode other rights such as same-sex marriage

Overturning Roe¹ v. Wade² could erode³ other rights such as same-sex marriage

Transcript⁴

Democrats⁵ are warning that the draft opinion from Justice Samuel Alito that would strike down Roe v. Wade could threaten other rights rooted in privacy — including marriage and contraception.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

After the leaked draft of a Supreme⁶ Court decision to overturn Roe hit the internet this week, Democrats quickly found themselves talking about how an array of rights besides abortion⁷ are under threat, such as gay marriage and birth control. Here's Joe Biden speaking this week.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: What are the next things that are going to be attacked? Because this MAGA crowd is really the most extreme political organization that's existed in American history.

MART?NEZ: NPR political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben is here to talk us through this about what it means both legally and politically. Danielle, let's start with the legal side of things. Are gay marriage and birth control connected to abortion legally?

DANIELLE KURTZLEBEN, BYLINE⁸: They are connected. And the idea in Roe is that abortion is an unenumerated right - that is, it's one that the Constitution protects, even if the Constitution doesn't explicitly⁹ say so. And the idea is that it's - abortion is protected by the 14th Amendment¹⁰, which the court has used to protect people's right to privacy. So Alito argues that when that 14th Amendment was passed in 1868, American law didn't recognize abortion as a fundamental right. Therefore, he says, the right to an abortion isn't protected. Now, that logic¹¹ could carry over to a lot of other rights, says Mary Ziegler, who is a visiting professor at Harvard Law School.

MARY ZIEGLER: At the time the relevant part of the Constitution was written, same-sex couples could not marry. Interracial couples certainly couldn't marry. Birth control was being criminalized. And so the logic is, if that's how we determine where our constitutional rights begin and end, there's no reason that would stop with abortion.

KURTZLEBEN: Now, Alito does write in the opinion that Roe is separate from those other rights because it's specifically about fetal life. But that doesn't mean the court can't change its mind in the future.

MART?NEZ: Yeah, this has quickly become a central message for Democrats. What's the political logic behind that?

KURTZLEBEN: You know, I've asked a lot of supporters of abortion rights how they feel about that message because those activists¹² have criticized people like Biden heavily for seeming reluctant to talk about abortion or even use the word. So grouping abortion in with other rights might come off as reluctance¹³ or changing the subject, but Renee Bracey Sherman, who is the founder¹⁴ of abortion rights advocacy group We Testify, she told me that this is about making voters see abortion as a fundamental part of a landscape of rights that are all interconnected and that it's about just educating voters. Here's what she said.

RENEE BRACEY SHERMAN: A lot of people think, I might never need an abortion. And a lot of people think about all issues like, oh, I'm not trans. I'm not Black. Why does police brutality¹⁵ matter to me? But I think what people don't realize is how much something like Roe v. Wade is the bedrock of so many other things legally.

MART?NEZ: All right. So, well, what do we know, then, about how that argument will play with voters in November? Because if you look at the national landscape, Democrats were not expected to do well in the midterms. Could this help them?

KURTZLEBEN: Well, let's start with some basic numbers. A majority of Americans believe that abortion should be legal in some or all circumstances, but a plurality are in that same category - they think there should be some restrictions¹⁶. And that's important because pollster Tresa Undem told me that along those lines, a lot of Americans just don't feel very emotional about the topic of abortion. It just doesn't come up much for them. But that could change if Roe is overturned.

TRESA UNDEM: That is going to break through to people. They don't have to read a political article. They're going to hear about it. They're going to be upset about it. They're going to be surprised by it - maybe not shocked, but surprised.

KURTZLEBEN: So if people who don't normally think about abortion much hear that this right could be taken away, they could be angry. That said, we don't know how this is going to play out. We're in uncharted territory. And by the way, there are more immediate¹⁷ consequences. If Roe is overturned, greater abortion restrictions will start before November.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben. Danielle, thanks.

KURTZLEBEN: Thank you.

1 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

2 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

3 erode   

v.侵蚀，腐蚀，使...减少、减弱或消失

参考例句：

• Once exposed,soil is quickly eroded by wind and rain.一旦暴露在外，土壤很快就会被风雨侵蚀。
• Competition in the financial marketplace has eroded profits.金融市场的竞争降低了利润。

4 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

5 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

7 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

8 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

9 explicitly   

ad.明确地，显然地

参考例句：

• The plan does not explicitly endorse the private ownership of land. 该计划没有明确地支持土地私有制。
• SARA amended section 113 to provide explicitly for a right to contribution. 《最高基金修正与再授权法案》修正了第123条，清楚地规定了分配权。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

10 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

11 logic   

n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性

参考例句：

• What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑？
• I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。

12 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 reluctance   

n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿

参考例句：

• The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。
• He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

14 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

15 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

16 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

17 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。