A Divided Nation Reacts to the End of Roe v Wade

Opinion sections across the spectrum were filled to the brim on Friday with commentary about the end of Roe v. Wade. 

The Supreme Court’s historic decision to overturn Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey quickly became the dominant news story across the spectrum. Along with the main decision to overturn federal protections for pre-viability abortion rights, Justice Clarence Thomas also stirred controversy with a concurring opinion that questioned the court’s “substantive due process precedents” on same-sex marriage and contraception.

Voices from the left were strongly opposed to the decision, calling the Supreme Court’s conservative majority “audacious” and “contemptuous.” Some argued the court had harmed its legitimacy as a nonpartisan institution. The homepage of The Cut, New York Magazine’s (Left bias) women-focused section, almost exclusively featured headlines like “How to Protect Yourself When Seeking an Abortion.” Some voices also took issue with Thomas’ concurring opinion, with one Vox (Left bias) writer calling it “odious.”

Voices from the right were similarly emphatic but overwhelmingly celebratory; one National Review (Right bias) writer called the decision “The Greatest Victory in the History of the Conservative Movement.” Some voices in the Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) praised former President Donald Trump and dismissed concerns that the end of Roe would threaten gay marriage. Along with several abortion opinions, Fox News (Right bias) also featured voices opposing trans-inclusive language like “birthing persons” and pronouns.