Ending Roe Threatens More Than Abortion Rights

In discourse about Roe v. Wade being overturned and states severely restricting or limiting abortions, much of the discussion is (rightly) focused on the potential fallout for those with unwanted or unsustainable pregnancies. It's girls and women of childbearing age on whom such prohibitions would fall the hardest, or at least the most directly. But banning abortion would bring many second-order effects that merit consideration, too. Some children, families, and medical professionals may suffer grave consequences. We're also likely to see a drastically expanded state. Today I want to devote a little attention to some of these often-overlooked consequences.

Opponents of abortion often say "just put the baby up for adoption!" as if carrying that baby for nine or so months beforehand isn't a major endeavor in the best of circumstances and, often, dangerous or damaging to a woman's health. But women aren't the only ones who suffer from forced pregnancies. People who don't want to be pregnant aren't always capable of or willing to provide a healthy gestational environment—and that could be terrible for the children they eventually give birth to.