7 Reasons Roe -vs-Wade is Deeply Misleading

-Source-The Federalist- Weve heard it a million times since Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement. Well hear it a hundred million more between now and the end of confirmation hearings for whomever is designated to fill the vacant spot on the Supreme Court: Americans support Roe v. Wade." The poll numbers seem to bear this out at least if one refuses to do any critical analysis of what the poll question and its answer actually reveals. The reason such a poll question is being cited of course is to put the new SCOTUS nomineesomeone many believe may put Roe in serious danger of being overturnedin the context of a hostile public who wouldnt approve of such a development. But can answers to a poll question like Do you support Roe v. Wade?" demonstrate that the public supports the abortion policy Roe requires? Not at all. Here are seven reasons it is deeply misleading to claim Americans support Roe v. Wade. 1. Many Americans Know Little About Roe A high percentage of Americans dont know much about what Roe says or does. In a Pew Forum study done on the fortieth anniversary of Roe we learned that 38 percent of Americans think Roe is a decision about something other than abortion. For those younger than 30 years old this number rises to a shocking 56 percent. Furthermore of those who know that Roe was about abortion many dont know even the most basic details of the case. Many wrongly believe for instance that overturning Roe would make abortion flatly illegal instead of merely returning the issue to a legislative process for states to decide. 2. Many Abortion Activists Dont Like Roe Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg speaking at the University of Chicago said Roe was a disappointment because it focused on privacy rather than on advancing womens rights. Linda Greenhouse an abortion-rights activist journalist who covered the Supreme Court for The New York Times claims of Roe that the seven middle-aged to elderly men in the majority certainly didnt think they were making a statement about womens rights." Rather she said authentically female concerns were nearly absent from the opinion."