Washington, D.C. – Members of the Project 21 black leadership network expressed cautious optimism regarding a leaked document indicating that the U.S. Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade and return the issue of abortion back to the states. They also criticized apparent political motivations behind the leak.
“Along with the rest of America, I am waiting for verification and confirmation that this is the justices’ true decision,” said Project 21 member and pro-life leader Day Gardner. “However, I was immediately overcome with tears of joy – giving praise and glory to God in Christ for even the slightest possibility, the slightest hope of ending the horrible practice of killing preborn children.”
A draft of the majority opinion in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization was leaked to the media this week, leading many to speculate that the Court plans to overturn two cases – Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey – to allow state law to again dictate the legality of abortion.
“Finally, the disproportionate murder of preborn black babies can come to an end,” said Project 21 member Mike Hill. “Per capita, more preborn innocent black babies are murdered in the womb than any other segment in America. Margaret Sanger’s eugenics agenda and its devastating effect on black America is coming to its bloody end. Now the battle shifts to the state level.”
According to a report by Politico, an initial draft of the majority opinion in the Mississippi-initiated abortion case, authored by Justice Samuel Alito, will overturn the Roe and Casey rulings that are central to federal protection of abortion. Alito is credited with having written in the opinion: “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
“According to a draft, it looks like the Supreme Court is going to send abortion back to the states. I am not surprised,” said Project 21 member Marie Fischer. “The basis of Roe v. Wade was privacy, but the COVID pandemic and government mandates threw out privacy for millions of Americans. The left ultimately could not have its cake and eat it too. Either push mandates and vaccines that strip privacy rights from individuals or keep privacy for all.”
This is the first time in modern history that a draft opinion in a pending Supreme Court case has been leaked. Because this is the most controversial case before the Court in decades, the leak has further politicized the issue and raised concerns about undue influences being put on justices to changes their votes or alter their opinions.
“An initial draft of this Supreme Court opinion should not have been released publicly. Releasing drafts of Court decisions could undermine the ability of the justices to decide future cases,” said Project 21 member Derryck Green. “Having said that, and if the news is correct, Justice Alito is both morally and politically right in his legal analysis. Morally, Roe was a terrible decision. It lacked legal expertise and seems to violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Legally, it’s wrong because abortion clearly isn’t found in the U.S. Constitution. Therefore, the decision regarding its legality should be left to the individual states to decide.
“The hope is that, despite this leak, the justices who are in favor of overturning this legal precedent will hold firm and steadfastly refuse to change their minds,” added Green. “This has the moral potential to save an untold number of lives – particularly black lives – since non-Hispanic black women generally have higher rates of abortions than their multiethnic peers.”
“Casey and Roe were unfounded and wrongly decided,” said Project 21 member Patrina Mosley. “We look forward to an official opinion release that ends the tragedy of abortion. If so, this will be the second greatest reversal in our country after slavery.”
To schedule an interview with a member of Project 21 on this or other issues, contact Judy Kent at (703) 477-7476.
Project 21, a leading voice of black conservatives for over 25 years, is sponsored by the National Center for Public Policy Research. Its members have been quoted, interviewed or published over 50,000 times since the program was created in 1992. Contributions to the National Center are tax-deductible and greatly appreciated, and may be earmarked exclusively for the use of Project 21.