Story by Alyssa Riley

Photos by Alexander King

In 1973, the historical Roe v. Wade case ensured that all American women had legal and safe access to abortion in the United States. With many bills banning abortion being passed by individual states, this constitutional right may be on its way to becoming a thing of the past.  

In 2021, eight states enacted bills that will restrict abortions – Arkansas being one of them. However, most are ineffective due to them being challenged in court.

The Arkansas Unborn Child Protection Act, Senate Bill 6, was signed and passed March 9, 2021, by Gov. Asa Hutchinson after being filed nearly four months prior in November 2020. 

In the scenario that Roe v. Wade is overturned, this near-total ban – and others like it – will prohibit abortions in the state of Arkansas six weeks after conception to protect unborn children and all human life. The only exception to this ban is if the mother’s life is in danger due to the pregnancy.  

Hutchinson, in a statement following the passing of the bill, said, “I would have preferred the legislation to include the exceptions for rape and incest, which has been my consistent view, and such exceptions would increase the chances for a review by the U.S. Supreme Court.”

On March 7, 2021, two days before Hutchinson’s signing of the bill, Arkansas pro-choice movement groups rallied outside of the State Capitol; the protestors spoke out against the bill and talked about the dangers it would present to many women.

In addition to illegalizing nearly all abortions, SB6 will allow the private right of action for any person to sue another who aids a woman gaining access to abortion. This includes providers, funds, family members and friends.  

Junior Journalism student at the University of Arkansas, Madi Wright, said, “I believe that the new abortion law essentially takes away what is inherently a choice meant only for women, and for what they alone believe to be the best course of action for themselves.”

Other states that have passed a near-total ban on abortions include Louisiana, Oklahoma and Utah.  

Ali Taylor, co-founder and president of Arkansas Abortion Support Network, has been running marathons since March 3, 2021, to fund women in need of abortion services. The Arkansas Abortion Support Network website advertises Taylor’s mission. New Page — Arkansas Abortion Support Network

The website said Arkansas is already one of the most abortion-hostile states in the country. “We need your help to continue supporting people in need of abortion services. Please donate if you can. Please share, share, share!” said Ali. 

Subdivision 1a of the act says, “It is time for the United States Supreme Court to redress and correct the grave injustice and the crime against humanity which is being perpetuated by its decisions in Roe v. Wade, Doe v. Bolton, and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.”  

According to the state of Arkansas, the three abortion cases were eligible for an overturn by the United States Supreme Court because of five changes in law and fact: they have not been accepted by scholars and the like, new scientific studies show life begins at conception, abortions inflict serious harm on women, Safe Haven laws eliminate all burden of a child and the growing culture and want for adoption in the states.  

After the passing of SB6 in March, it has been met with challenges and pushbacks, including a blockage by U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker in July 2021, granting a preliminary injunction to prevent passing and implementation. However, as of right now, the right to abortion in Arkansas remains effective.  

Baker cited Roe v. Wade, “This right is grounded in the right to privacy rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment’s concept of personal liberty, which was found to be ‘broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.” 

The decision to overturn Roe v. Wade will be decided in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case following the passing of the Mississippi Gestational Age Act in 2018, illegalizing nearly all abortions 15 weeks after conception. 

According to NPR’s, ‘Americans are divided on abortion. The Supreme Court may not wait for minds to change,’ justices will decide in the following months whether bans on abortion before fetal viability can be constitutionally legal. 

However, while many states are banning abortions after detection of a heartbeat – anywhere from 5 to 6 weeks after conception – a fetus is only considered viable after 24 to 28 weeks, said Gutt Macher Institute. 

If a majority of the Supreme Court justices answer yes to passing Mississippi’s Act, prohibiting abortions after 15 weeks, Roe v. Wade and the nationwide right to abortion will be undone and new laws like Arkansas’ Unborn Child Protection Act will go into effect. 

The 44th Annual March for Life anti-abortion rally was held on Jan. 16, 2022, in front of the state capitol in Little Rock, Arkanasas, according to Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. 

At the rally, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said, “Arkansas has stood proudly with my friend, Lynn Fitch, the attorney general of the great state of Mississippi, and she took up the Dobbs case to the United States Supreme Court. And do you know why? Because Arkansas is God’s country, and in God’s country, we defend life.” 

While many protesters are in favor of Thomas E. Dobbs in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Pew Research released May 6, 2021, ‘About six-in-ten Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases.’ 

“In the latest survey, Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are 45 percentage points more likely than Republicans and Republican leaners to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases (80% vs. 35%),” Hannah Hartig for Pew Research Center wrote. “This gap is little changed over the last few years, but the current divide is wider than it was in the past.” About six-in-ten Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

While the nation – and the states within – are at odds when it comes to the constitutionality of abortions, no one is quite sure what the results will be of the Mississippi case. However, even abortion-rights supporters have an inkling that Roe v. Wade will be overturned in the foreseeable future.  

KHN’s Julie Rovner in, ‘Conservative Justices Seem Poised to Overturn Roe’s Abortion Rights,’ said, “…Judging from the questions asked by justices, it appeared possible – even likely – that a majority of them could vote to turn the thorny question of whether to allow abortion and under what circumstances back to individual states.” 

By the end of 2022, Arkansans and Americans alike will know for sure whether abortions remain a constitutional right or ridden of – except in the cases of mother-endangerment – altogether.