By Shuli Gross, Eighth Grade, Krieger Schechter Day School of Chizuk Amuno Congregation
On Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021, the Supreme Court of Texas, in a vote of 5-4, passed a law prohibiting abortions at any time after about six weeks of pregnancy.
Before 1973’s landmark Roe v. Wade legal case, women in the United States were forced to travel to other countries for abortions or by illegal means. According to Linda Gross, 82, a Pikesville resident and grandmother of two Krieger Schechter students (plus a pair of alumni), “People who had a lot of money could afford to travel to a place where you could get an abortion, but most people didn’t have that kind of money.”
For decades, many Americans have fought for abortion rights. According to Sharon Green, the K-8 curriculum coordinator at KSDS, Texas’s recent abortion law “has really sent shockwaves not just around Texas but around the entire country.” Many protests have erupted in reaction to this legislation, she said.
“Sometimes when one state passes a law, it gives momentum to another state that might be considering doing something similar,” said Green. Because Texas — the second largest state in the nation — is the first state in the U.S. to ban abortions since Roe v. Wade, it could inspire other states to pass similar legal measures.
For example, as Green noted, lawmakers in Florida are now considering changing their own abortion law to replicate Texas’s ban.
“This is not a law that would’ve passed in a more liberal majority,” Green said. (Generally, political conservatives tend to believe in more restrictive abortion laws, while liberals are more supportive of a woman’s choice regarding her body.)
As stated in Texas’ new law, a woman can only receive an abortion before reaching about six weeks of pregnancy. However, this part of the law is deceptive and illogical, say critics, because most women do not even know they are pregnant at that juncture, or have only known for a week or two.
“Sometimes, at six weeks you don’t even know that you are actually pregnant,” Green said. “You may not have any symptoms. You may have missed a menstrual period. A lot of people are erratic anyway.”
From a halachic, or Jewish legal, perspective, Rabbi Moshe Schwartz, head of school at KSDS, noted, “Our tradition expresses, in multiple places, that the health of a mother is of the utmost importance.”
Said Green: “Whether it means that the mother is going to die right away if we don’t do this abortion, or if it means that her health could be weakened by it, from what I understand, Jewish law would not support banning abortion after six weeks.”
Texas’s new law is highly controversial and even irrational, from this writer’s perspective. It brings our country back in time to almost 50 years. For years, women and others have fought for their right to choose to receive an abortion. Women all over the U.S. are growing concerned about this law and fearful about what will happen to women’s reproductive rights in the future.
Shuli Gross is an eighth grade student at Krieger Schechter Day School of Chizuk Amuno Congregation.
Jmore Juniors Noah S. and Eli S. take a look at the differences between the Jewish communities of Baltimore and Chicago.
Madeline L., a seventh grade student at Krieger Schechter Day School, writes about the phenomenon that has been Starbucks over the past half-century.
An eighth grade student at Krieger Schechter Day School, Jmore Juniors writer Micah B answers an array of questions from his peers.
Jmore Junior Eitan Beck writes about the pros and cons of having electric cars in the future.