In the Wake of Roe
Catholics hoping for a better world are in denial
In the past few days, I have read a couple of thoughtful pieces by Catholic writers about the end of Roe v. Wade.
The writers start out by being clear that they were glad to hear that it’s likely Roe was going to be overturned, and states would be able to make their own laws regarding a person’s ability to access abortion, and when (or if). They are unabashedly pro-life.
Then they appealed to other pro-life activists to be aware of the work that needed to be done so that people who found themselves with an unwanted pregnancy wouldn’t seek one out. They spoke of the fight for paid family leave, universal childcare, improved maternal mortality, paid healthcare, etc., etc. The fight for these things should be the next thing to tackle once Roe went away. Give people the means to be able to care for the children that they were now going to have to bear if they couldn’t make arrangements to get somewhere where an abortion was available.
This idea is laudable. Of course, pro-life people should want these things, a better social safety net, a way to access education, healthcare, food and clothing, childcare, rewarding work, and paid leave.
Here’s the thing though
Those pro-life, pro-safety net Catholics are standing with people who not only want to end access to abortion, but who also want to end access to birth control. And gay marriage. And gender affirming care. And voting rights for minorities. And Obamacare. And the social safety net.
Republicans and Evangelical Christians have no interest is expanding access to anything. They don’t want to take away abortion with one hand and give access to paid family leave with the other. They want to take away rights with both hands.
No abortion.
No sex education in public schools.
No birth control or reproductive healthcare.
No rights for LGBTQ people.
And I’m not here to paint American Catholics with a broad brush. Plenty of Catholics use birth control. Catholics have abortions. There are gay and trans Catholics and Catholics who love, support, and accept gay and trans people. Many Catholics — most people, in fact — understand that outlawing abortion won’t end abortion. It will just make it harder to get and more dangerous, for those seeking one and those providing them.
I was a pro-choice Catholic, and identified as a Catholic Democrat. (Now I guess I’m just a pro-choice Democrat, which seems largely redundant, although there are pro-life Democrats.)
I don’t know where I am going with this essay. I am angry and frustrated, I am scared for my family, I am scared for the future of the country. I have voted with my dollars. my voice, and my actual vote. No well-meaning, pro-life, pro-social justice/social safety net Catholic is going to make me feel any better. I understand that short of reproductive healthcare and abortion, they and I want many of the same things for the good of our society.
But they are standing with people who don’t give a fuck about women and minorities. They can talk all they want about what should happen once Roe ends, and what they hope will happen to help people who find themselves with unwanted pregnancies and no access to abortion. But they are living in deep denial if they think that’s the way the dominoes are going to fall.
