Only a few weeks remain until the Supreme Court makes a final decision on whether it will overturn Roe v. Wade, which it’s poised to do, according to a leaked draft opinion published by Politico. If the ruling is reversed, and states have the right to restrict or outlaw abortion, the U.S. would become one of the few countries on the opposite side of a decades-long, global trend of increasing a woman’s right to choose, USA Today reports.
“There’s no doubt the United States is an influential country in many ways,” says Wendy Parmet, Matthews Distinguished University Professor of Law and co-director of Northeastern’s Center for Health Policy and Law. “And opponents of abortion in many countries will probably take heart from the changes in the United States, and feel supported by that.”
So, in a post-Roe world, how would other countries view the Supreme Court’s decision? Would they follow in the footsteps of the U.S. or continue the momentum of allowing more access to abortion?
“I think that it actually will be significant. We see internationally an overall trend toward more liberalized access to abortion,” says Martha F. Davis, distinguished professor of law at Northeastern, who teaches constitutional law and human rights advocacy.
