SAN DIEGO — Reaction to the leaked draft Supreme Court ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade continues to rock the nation on both sides of the reproductive rights fight.
Governor Newsom spoke Wednesday and addressed abortion rights with a warning about what could happen next if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
“This is a remarkable moment in American history when all over the country instead of expanding rights, they’re about to roll back rights. Our entire history is about expanding rights not restricting rights. If you think it affects someone else over there – this is about you -- they’re coming after you. Who are you? All of us,” Newsom said.
As Governor Newsom suggested, that leaked draft opinion could have wider reaching implications for other rights and freedoms not explicitly stated in the constitution. Critics of the opinion say other freedoms like marriage, sexuality, same sex nuptials and even birth control could be on the chopping block.
"Under oath, the most recent Republican appointees said that longstanding precedent shouldn't be overturned. They also said under oath that they don't think Roe should be overturned," explained attorney Mark Reichel.
Now, Reichel said those justices must have changed their tune from their previous statements because the draft opinion is the exact opposite. Conservatives who support the overturning of Roe v. Wade said the possible decision has no effect on other laws, but Reichel disagreed.
"They said very profoundly, clearly and strongly that if it's not in the constitution, you don't have that protection. You don't have that right," continued Reichel. "So, if it's not in the constitution, there's no reason the Supreme Court should jump in and try to help a citizen if they say there's government or state over-reach or they're violating certain rights. Those rights have to be written in the constitution."
That means any right or protection could be a target, including same sex marriage, according to Reichel who also added: "If you take away rights that we have grown to believe are necessary to us, necessary to exist here as Americans and take them away because they are not specifically written in the constitution from 1788 and 1789, it's not a country we're all going to want to live in."
Fernando Lopez, the Executive Director for San Diego Pride agreed.
"When you look at the draft opinion, they were very clear in the recriminalization of LGBT people and removal of the right to marriage. There are 1,138 federal rights protections for LGBTQ people through marriage alone. So, you remove that one thing on the federal level and that's what you're changing. We're talking about the patchwork quilt of rights and protections for women, for people of color, for LGBTQ folx the right to vote - all over the country it's all under attack," said Lopez.
Lopez added that this is a wake up call that it’s time to get to work and vote.
"Unless we see that our values are the same, that our struggles are the same, and we start working on this together, we're going to be in the same position or worse (concerning marriage equality) a year from now," they said.
California lawmakers are now trying to get a constitutional amendment on the ballot, which would codify abortion rights statewide. That would require a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers, then it would go to voters in November.
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