South Carolina's All-Male Supreme Court Upholds Controversial Abortion Ban

The all-male South Carolina Supreme Court has upheld a six-week abortion ban, allowing the state's restrictive abortion law to go into effect. The decision comes after the retirement of the court's sole female justice, who had previously struck down a similar ban. The court's majority opinion acknowledged that the law infringes on a woman's right to privacy and bodily autonomy but deemed it constitutional. Abortion access in the South has significantly declined since the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, and this ruling will further limit access for patients seeking abortions in South Carolina. Advocates for reproductive rights have criticized the court's decision, arguing that the new law is essentially the same as the one previously deemed unconstitutional.