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Fetal Personhood as 'The New Civil War over Reproduction'

Apr 23, 2025
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INSIGHT

Fetal Personhood's Constitutional Basis

  • Fetal personhood claims that a fetus is a distinct human individual with constitutional rights from fertilization.
  • This concept targets the 14th Amendment's application to embryos and fetuses as persons under the Constitution.
INSIGHT

Legal Strategy Behind Personhood

  • Recognizing fetuses as rights-holding persons would make liberal abortion and IVF laws unconstitutional.
  • The strategy involves gradual state laws leading to a nationwide judicial ruling imposing fetal personhood.
INSIGHT

Personhood's Impact on IVF

  • If embryos are persons, IVF practices like storing multiple embryos and embryo destruction would be legally problematic.
  • This could significantly reduce IVF's effectiveness and accessibility, possibly deterring people from using it.
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