Roe Reckonings: THINGS ARE BLEAK AS F**K

Roe Reckonings: THINGS ARE BLEAK AS F**K

Welcome back to Across the Pond Abortion News – we missed you, chaos never sleeps, and neither do we.

This week’s headline?
Foetal Personhood – a once laughable long-shot – is now knocking on the Supreme Court’s door like it’s got VIP tickets.

Mary Ziegler, legal scholar and chaos cartographer, laid it out crystal clear in her new book Personhood: The New Civil War Over Reproduction: The endgame isn’t just banning abortion. It’s rewriting who counts as a person in the eyes of the law — and fetal personhood is the blueprint.

🧠 Foetal Personhood 101:

It’s the belief that embryos and fetuses should have the same legal rights as fully born humans. Think due process, equal protection, and yes — criminal justice protections. Which, in this context, means treating abortion not just as a medical procedure but as murder.

The movement’s long-term strategy? Not to sway public opinion — that’s gone stale — but to build a scaffolding of court cases so that when fetal personhood hits SCOTUS, justices can point at the wall of precedent and say, “Look, it’s already here.”

Spoiler: It’s already here.

⚖️ From Fringe to Frontline:

Once the political equivalent of yelling “Fire!” in a maternity ward, the idea of charging women with murder for having abortions is now real legislative text. Twelve states. One year. Some of these bills explicitly open the door to the death penalty.

We’re not in the 2010s anymore, Toto.

💡 How’d We Get Here?

The anti-abortion movement didn’t always have murder charges on the menu. There were folks talking support services, housing, better healthcare. But that wing got swallowed whole by the Reagan-era GOP ethos of law, order, and punishment. Enter the current crusaders: abolitionists who believe that if abortion = murder, then women = murderers.

This faction has traded sidewalk counseling for criminal charges and isn’t looking back. Their goal isn’t hearts and minds. It’s five votes on the Supreme Court.

🗳️ But Do People Actually Want This?

Short answer: No. Not even close.

The American public is overwhelmingly pro-choice.

📊 A May 2024 Gallup poll found that 85% of Americans believe abortion should be legal in all or some circumstances. A Pew Research Center survey from April 2024 shows that 63% say abortion should be legal in most or all cases.

🔬 And when it comes to in vitro fertilisation (IVF), the numbers are even clearer:
A CBS News-YouGov poll found 86% of Americans support legal access to IVF. According to Pew, 70% view IVF positively — just 8% oppose it.

So what’s going on?

Public opinion is complex, but the message is consistent:
Americans support reproductive freedom. Even those who express moral concerns about foetal rights draw a clear line at banning abortion or restricting IVF.

And yet, this movement isn’t about representing the will of the people.

👉 It’s about reshaping the legal system — where five unelected justices can override the views of millions.

This isn’t a debate. It’s a power play.
And the stakes? Abortion, contraception, IVF — and the very definition of bodily autonomy.

🧨 Bottom Line:

Foetal personhood isn’t some philosophical hypothetical anymore. It’s law-in-waiting, creeping through court dockets, piggybacking on hardline anti-abortion legislation in conservative US states like Texas and Alabama, and keeping abortion abolitionists gassed up and frothing.

The question isn’t if this will reach the Supreme Court — it’s when. And the consequences? Bleak. As. F**k.