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Outraged leftists claim civil rights will be overturned after abortion. But Alito's leaked opinion disproves them.
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Outraged leftists claim civil rights will be overturned after abortion. But Alito's leaked opinion disproves them.

Leftists and Democrats stoked fear after the leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion revealed the court will overturn Roe v. Wade. They claimed the forthcoming decision is a bellwether for the revocation of other rights.

What was claimed?

Politicians, journalists, and lawyers who are outraged over the decision claimed that LGBT rights, civil rights, and other rights are next.

  • Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.): "As we’ve warned, SCOTUS isn’t just coming for abortion — they’re coming for the right to privacy Roe rests on, which includes gay marriage + civil rights."
  • Nikole Hannah-Jones, author of the "1619 Project": "You can’t understand the court overturning Roe without understanding the role racism has played in the rise of the religious right and no reporter should report on this without talking about what may come next: Rulings against civil rights."
  • Bakari Sellers, a Democratic lawyer: "Gay rights. Brown v. Board (which nullified "separate but equal"). Loving (the case that banned laws against interracial marriage). S*** they coming for all us. Sleep tight."
  • Dan Canon, a law professor: "I just want to add to the chorus of voices saying that this won't stop at abortion. Marriage equality, birth control, affirmative action. Miranda rights, trans rights, separation of church and state, the whole-ass 4th Amendment, civil and criminal trials, these and more can all be taken away. They've told us they want to do it and they WILL ABSOLUTELY DO IT if there isn't significant and meaningful pushback."
  • Lauren Coats, a senior CNN legal analyst: "A familiar phrase is 'a slippery slope' in the Supreme Court. That which you do in one area could extend to others. Well, fundamental rights include interstate travel, include the idea of same-sex marriage, include same-sex relationships, just to name a few. Now this is essentially gone — what’s next?"
  • Athena Salman (D), an Arizona state lawmaker: "They’re coming after all of our fundamental human rights. Full stop."

But what is the truth?

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, who authored the leaked opinion, specifically stated in the draft that a decision to overturn abortion precedents would not open the door to roll back other rights.

"[T]o ensure that our decision is not misunderstood or mischaracterized, we emphasize that our decision concerns the constitutional right to abortion and no other right. Nothing in this opinion should be understood to cast doubt on precedents that do not concern abortion," Alito wrote.

Chief Justice John Roberts has confirmed that the leaked draft is authentic.

Roberts vowed, "To the extent this betrayal of the confidences of the Court was intended to undermine the integrity of our operations, it will not succeed. The work of the Court will not be affected in any way."

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