Abortion and Cannabis: The Divided States of America
Sarah Hines
Today is a sad day for the United States and the rule of law. In the Dobbs decision, the Supreme Court overruled Roe and Casey and held there is no constitutional right to abortion. The Dobbs decision will have generational effects that will continue to divide this once great nation. Abortion, like cannabis laws, demonstrate the massive legal and ideological divides in the United States.
After 50 years of Roe v. Wade, it’s hard to imagine a world without the constitutional right to choose. The harsh reality is women no longer have the basic right over their reproductive decisions. My heart is broken for all the women who now will have to travel to legal states for an abortion, which could have criminal penalties, or be forced to birth children they don’t want.
As an attorney, I am shocked by the inherent contradictions in the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe and Casey. The decision reads like a farce in which legal precedent is used as justification when it serves them and is discarded when it doesn’t.
The conservative right played this well - stacking the courts for years and passing ever more restrictive state laws against abortion. What’s worse is that Trump’s legacy of court appointments will have decades-long impacts to our society and the environment, and we are all losers. Even after an increase in mass shootings, just this week the Court decided that states cannot restrict the right to carry firearms. Next, the Court seems likely to restrict agencies’ ability to enact regulations around climate change and virtually any other regulation.
This is a new America where the fundamental truths many citizens once held dear will end. Yet, for many Americans this is a beginning of what they have voted for, protested for, and paid for - a smaller government that protects giant corporations, oppresses women and minorities, and disregards climate change and the environment. A simple reflection on the new America reveals this truth. Many Americans demand a right to choose to wear masks or to get vaccinations, and now celebrate that women have no right to choose what happens in their bodies. The truth is self-evident: the Court has forced women back 50 years and decided that women can’t be trusted with their choices or bodies.
As a cannabis entrepreneur and lawyer, I can’t help but think about the similarities to abortion and cannabis. In some states, cannabis is legal while in other states cannabis has harsh criminal penalties. Now, some states will have legal abortions and other states will have criminal and civil penalties for people who have an abortion and even for people who aid and abet abortion. And worst of all, cannabis and abortion illegality disproportionately harm people of color.
In these moments, it’s natural to feel powerless and frozen. What can be done when the Supreme Court takes away fundamental rights over one’s body? We are still voters, and we are still citizens, and we still have a voice. So, we’re shutting down the company and giving our team the day off, fully paid, so that they can peacefully demonstrate and engage in civic action. We are also creating policies to support continued civil action. It’s time to take to the streets, in peace, and in solidarity with people who will experience oppression and whose reproductive choices have been stolen by our nation’s highest court. The Proof and Super Wow team will be out on the streets today, and we hope to see you there.
By Julie Mercer-Ingram, Founder & CEO of Proof & Super Wow