The Intelligence from The Economist Heartbeat of the matter: Texas’s draconian abortion law
Sep 6, 2021
Stephen Mazey, a Supreme Court correspondent for The Economist, discusses the implications of Texas's strict abortion law and its potential threat to Roe v. Wade. He explores the legal battles ahead and the law's national ramifications. Sarah Maslin, Brazil correspondent, shares alarming statistics about police violence, particularly the racial disparities in killings. She sheds light on the tragic police raid in Jacarezinho and its impact on marginalized communities, drawing parallels to systemic racism in the U.S.
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Texas Heartbeat Bill
- The Texas "heartbeat bill" bans abortions after six weeks, based on a detectable electrical impulse, not a fetal heartbeat.
- The law makes no exceptions for rape or incest and relies on private citizens to enforce it through lawsuits.
Supreme Court Decision
- The Supreme Court's decision to uphold the Texas law is surprising, given its restrictive nature.
- The enforcement mechanism, allowing private citizens to sue, makes it difficult to challenge legally.
Dissenting Opinions
- Dissenting justices criticized the decision, with Sonia Sotomayor calling the law "flagrantly unconstitutional".
- Even Chief Justice Roberts, though conservative, expressed concern about the law's unprecedented nature.