Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett defends her 2022 vote to overturn Roe v. Wade in a forthcoming memoir, Listening to the Law. In passages reviewed by CNN, Barrett argues abortion differs from other constitutional rights because it remains at the center of a long-running moral conflict, unlike same-sex marriage, contraception or childbearing, which she says have stronger public backing.
Barrett, appointed to the Court in 2020 by President Donald Trump, writes that the justices should respect choices made through democratic processes rather than dictate outcomes. She echoes Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which described Roe as “an exercise of raw judicial power.”
How does Barrett frame Roe and Dobbs?
Barrett contends the Court overstepped in 1973 by declaring abortion a constitutional right, saying the practice was not rooted in American law or tradition. She adds that Roe cut short political compromise and inflamed division.
To underscore that point, she cites a 1993 speech by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who said the ruling may have interrupted a reform process — though Ginsburg also supported the result.
Barrett also rejects the dissent from the Court’s three liberals in Dobbs, who warned that the decision stripped away women’s rights from the moment of fertilization.
Why distinguish abortion from marriage rights?
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63% of Americans say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 69% of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be legal.
According to CNN, Barrett writes that American law has long recognized liberties such as marriage, intimate relationships, procreation and contraception, noting that those rights enjoy broad public support. She contrasts those with abortion, which she writes lawmakers prohibited for much of U.S. history and which she says continues to divide the public.
A recent Pew Research Center survey found that 63% of Americans say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 36% say it should be illegal in most or all cases. In comparison, 69% of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be legal.
Her discussion comes as the Court has been asked to decide this fall whether to overturn or reconsider Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage.
What else does she reveal?
Barrett says her memoir is meant to explain the Court’s work without exposing private deliberations. She recounts that her chambers once marked a moment of agreement with champagne after colleagues quickly signed onto one of her opinions.
She also responds to criticism of her Catholic faith, noting that both religious and nonreligious judges may wrestle with tensions between personal beliefs and the law.
Sentinel, a conservative division of Penguin Random House, will release Listening to the Law on September 9. CNN reports that Barrett received a $2 million advance for the book.
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