Conservatism is usually defined as a reaction against reform or revolution, this research paper will explore the conservative reaction against the social movement for reproductive and abortion rights. Abortion is relevant, albeit sometimes overdone topic. This paper is not meant to argue the morality of the issue, only to examine the contemporary political movements and political theory behind the issue as a case-study on modern conservatism.
Abortion rights movement stem from the liberal notion of American individualism, with the women being completely autonomous in her right to choose; she is not obliged to consider the viewpoints of the unborn offspring, the father, or her parents if she is a minor, or society in general. Conservatives …show more content…
Wade. While the Republican Party adopted a platform on abortion which was far more conservative than Ford’s—their presidential nominee—views he was still unable to draw in enough Catholic and other conservative votes. The platform became far more important in the 1980s when it became a magnet for Evangelical voters who were turned off by what they considered rising promiscuity, and increases in abortions—they cast their support behind Reagan. “The party’s official position against abortion had become the symbol for a culturally conservative movement that was more powerful than Republican Party leaders, and even the ones who had created the party platform statement were unable to reverse it,” notes Williams in The GOP’s Abortion Strategy. The powerful conservative disposition pushing the anti-choice movement won the Republican Party. As Nation columnist Katha Pollitt noted in 2015, “the political wing of the anti-choice movement has thrown its lot with the conservative wing of the Republican …show more content…
Wade, the anti-choice movement has been winning ever since, particularly at the state level with conservative legislators redrawing the boundaries of what is a legal abortion in the U.S. The conservative pushback against Roe v. Wade has been powerful political force. In 1982 there were 2,908 abortion providers in the U.S. , in 2011 there were only 1,720. Between 2011 and 2015 alone, 288 abortion restrictions were enacted, now only 3 in 10 women of child-bearing age live in a state that is supportive of abortion rights, despite Roe vs. Wade being the law of the land. Today, abortion access often depends on where a woman lives, and her financial ability to travel. “Getting an abortion in America is, in some places, harder today than at any point since it became a constitutionally protected right 40 years ago,” notes Pickert in Time. This is because of the 1992 Supreme Court Case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which while upholding Roe v. Wade, said that states can regulate abortion as long as it does not impose an “undue burden” on women. The increasing number of state restrictions on abortion test the limits of the Casey ruling, and may ultimately lead to perhaps a more sympathetic Supreme Court to hear another case which could overturn Roe v. Wade. If that doesn’t happen, anti-choice proponents may render Roe v. Wade effectively moot for many women by state-imposed restrictions. Governor Phil Bryant admitted that
Abortion rights movement stem from the liberal notion of American individualism, with the women being completely autonomous in her right to choose; she is not obliged to consider the viewpoints of the unborn offspring, the father, or her parents if she is a minor, or society in general. Conservatives …show more content…
Wade. While the Republican Party adopted a platform on abortion which was far more conservative than Ford’s—their presidential nominee—views he was still unable to draw in enough Catholic and other conservative votes. The platform became far more important in the 1980s when it became a magnet for Evangelical voters who were turned off by what they considered rising promiscuity, and increases in abortions—they cast their support behind Reagan. “The party’s official position against abortion had become the symbol for a culturally conservative movement that was more powerful than Republican Party leaders, and even the ones who had created the party platform statement were unable to reverse it,” notes Williams in The GOP’s Abortion Strategy. The powerful conservative disposition pushing the anti-choice movement won the Republican Party. As Nation columnist Katha Pollitt noted in 2015, “the political wing of the anti-choice movement has thrown its lot with the conservative wing of the Republican …show more content…
Wade, the anti-choice movement has been winning ever since, particularly at the state level with conservative legislators redrawing the boundaries of what is a legal abortion in the U.S. The conservative pushback against Roe v. Wade has been powerful political force. In 1982 there were 2,908 abortion providers in the U.S. , in 2011 there were only 1,720. Between 2011 and 2015 alone, 288 abortion restrictions were enacted, now only 3 in 10 women of child-bearing age live in a state that is supportive of abortion rights, despite Roe vs. Wade being the law of the land. Today, abortion access often depends on where a woman lives, and her financial ability to travel. “Getting an abortion in America is, in some places, harder today than at any point since it became a constitutionally protected right 40 years ago,” notes Pickert in Time. This is because of the 1992 Supreme Court Case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which while upholding Roe v. Wade, said that states can regulate abortion as long as it does not impose an “undue burden” on women. The increasing number of state restrictions on abortion test the limits of the Casey ruling, and may ultimately lead to perhaps a more sympathetic Supreme Court to hear another case which could overturn Roe v. Wade. If that doesn’t happen, anti-choice proponents may render Roe v. Wade effectively moot for many women by state-imposed restrictions. Governor Phil Bryant admitted that