Texas’ SB8 is a hateful law. It bans abortion after only 6 weeks, which is before most women even know if they are pregnant. There are no exceptions. Further the legislation places a bounty on those who assist a woman in getting an abortion. Providing a sum of $10,000 to citizens who sue anyone that assists a woman who gets an abortion. It also kindly covers their attorney fees. 

The law is on its face unconstitutional, yet due to procedural reasons a divided Supreme Court rejected 5-4 vote an emergency motion by abortion providers and others to block enforcement. Because the refusal of the Supreme Court to block the legislation, abortions are essentially right now banned in Texas.  

The law, one of the nation’s strictest, bans abortions for many people who don’t even know they are pregnant and allows private citizens to file civil lawsuits against anyone who helps a pregnant person perform an abortion in violation of the law. Texas law states that individuals can step in and sue abortion providers for helping patients carry out abortions after six weeks.  

Anyone found guilty of having an abortion in violation of the restrictive Abortion Act, or assisting or facilitating an abortion, could be fined up to $10,000. The Texas law differs from other restrictive abortion laws in that it allows private individuals to sue abortion providers involved in abortion assistance rather than on officials to enforce the law.

In addition to banning abortions before the sixth week of pregnancy, the Texas law signed in allows citizens to file civil lawsuits against anyone who helps facilitate the procedure before that date, such as a person driving a pregnant woman to a clinic. This is egregious and hateful law with its bounty on women component is shocking. The rapist can sue the raped for having an abortion and the driver, her parents, friends or anyone who consulted her.

It is reminiscent of the Fugitive Slave Act, which allowed slave owners to search for former enslaved people who escaped through to the North. Thus hastening the lead up to a Civil War. So what would happen if Democratic leaning state legislatures like California passed counter legislation – allowing their citizens to sue anyone who attempted to enforce the unconstitutional forced pregnancy bill, and allowing one to collect $100,000 in damages and attorney fees. 

The majority of Americans do not support this and other Republican positions, which is why they are hard pressed to make it harder to vote. It is their plan. It is in their playbook to maintain minority rule. From the 30,000 foot view one can see where all this is headed and its not pretty. And as for the Supreme Court, much like in the 1850’s, they will either hasten the collapse of contemporary America or save it from collapse. Based on their decisions thus far it will be the former.