On March 4, France became the first country in the world to enshrine the right to abortion in their constitution. Here in the United States, we are regressing on women’s rights following the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which found that the U.S. Constitution “does not confer a right to abortion.” In the aftermath of this decision, 14 U.S. states with Republican-controlled legislatures have passed laws banning abortion in all or most circumstances, while an additional seven have placed gestational limits.
It is becoming increasingly clear that Dobbs’ implications reach beyond abortion: Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are people, meaning destroying these embryos can be legally considered wrongful death. Successful in vitro fertilization generally requires multiple embryos — many are lost during the process and the unused embryos are often discarded, which could make patients and providers liable for criminal and civil lawsuits. The ruling stems from the long-running, Christian-theology based fetal personhood argument. This line of reasoning states that personhood begins at conception, putting not only abortion and IVF but also embryonic stem cell research and many forms of birth control at risk.
Alabama’s Republican lawmakers quickly realized the unpopularity of the IVF decision and have already passed a law that shields IVF patients and providers from liability regarding the destruction of frozen embryos. Unfortunately, this law does nothing to solve the dissonance at the heart of this issue. Instead, it leaves IVF access vulnerable to continued legal challenges by failing to address the Alabama Supreme Court’s contention that embryos are people. It also diminishes the ability of patients to bring claims against IVF providers for genuine malpractice.
The religiously charged anti-abortion movement and the GOP are clearly less in sync than they once appeared. Some anti-abortion groups such as National Right to Life seem to support IVF restrictions, as do sections of the Christian right. Patrick T. Brown, a contributor for Deseret News, a publication owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, bemoaned IVF for facilitating the birth of children outside of marriage between a man and a woman. Yet, Alabama Republicans who passed a law banning abortions without exceptions for rape or incest were quick to protect IVF. This is despite the fact that the Alabama Supreme Court decision directly confers the rights of a person on embryos.
Nowhere is GOP hypocrisy on this issue clearer than in the statements of former Vice President Mike Pence. Pence has openly supported a 15-week national abortion ban, as well as state bans as early as six weeks. Yet, he has also come out in strong support of IVF, and his own wife went through the procedure multiple times as they struggled with infertility. If the same people who champion abortion bans and fetal personhood are willing to make exceptions for IVF, are the anti-abortion arguments really about “killing babies?”
The popularity of these procedures certainly plays a role in this discrepancy. Restrictions on abortion access have already impeded Republican electoral hopes since 52% of Americans consider themselves “pro-choice” compared to 44% self-identifying as “pro-life.” In the 2022 midterms, abortion opinions were a major factor in curbing the expected “red wave” and delivering wins to Democrats in swing states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania. Keeping IVF legal is supported by a whopping 86% of Americans, with only a mere 14% believing it should be illegal. Yet, the popularity of IVF over abortion is no excuse for blatant hypocrisy — the Alabama decision and subsequent law make it clear. Republicans can’t have it both ways.
There is also a difference in the demographics of people who seek abortions as opposed to IVF. Considering that almost half of people who seek abortions are below the poverty line while an IVF cycle can cost over $30,000, criminalizing or banning abortion has a more significant effect on low-income and minority women and families. This is especially true considering that wealthy individuals can more easily travel to another state to obtain a needed abortion — it is the most vulnerable who suffer the effects of these laws. Ultimately, Republicans are willing to back harmful anti-abortion policies and further fetal personhood arguments only up to the point where they can control the lives of vulnerable women and their families. When push comes to shove, they have largely proven that their “pro-life” arguments are just talk.
Here in Massachusetts or back in my home state of California, it can be easy to forget the terrifying implications of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. It is crucially important that we vote for and support legislators who will protect and fight for the reproductive rights in their hands now. If you can, donate to organizations like the Center for Reproductive Rights and the National Network of Abortion Funds. And in the meantime, we can’t forget the many people, most of whom are women, who have suffered deeply in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s fall. In a time when pro-abortion laws are trending across the globe, the U.S. is one of only four countries that have rolled back protections. We need to do better.
