In the immediate aftermath of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, global media outlets covered the impact of a post-roe United States on women’s rights, society, and generations to come. 

Last week VICE Insights handed over the microphone to our global youth community. We asked those living across America, “How does the supreme court decision impact what you do today and your future?”

92% of our community told us they oppose the Supreme Court’s decision (88% strongly oppose it). Here’s what they told us:

Home is Where the Heart is – And Access to Abortion
Now, compiling your list of prospective locations to live across the US includes asking which states provide access and rights to abortions. For some, living in the US is no longer an option:

“Unless it’s successfully challenged, it will impact where I consider living / taking jobs in the future. It will make me be less open in discussions with my healthcare providers (even not about pregnancy). It will make me fear sharing anything about future wanted pregnancies out of worry that I’ll be investigated if I miscarry. It will have to always be considered in so many aspects of my life.” – Gen Z, Woman, Arkansas

“I’m not sure if I want to live in the U.S. anymore because I don’t feel safe. I’m planning to have a child in the next 2 years. If it’s a daughter, my move will be haste. A part of me wants to stay and help the people who aren’t fortunate enough to be able to move to a safer country, but the other part of me isn’t sure I can and I don’t want to waste my time.” – Gen Y, Woman, Texas

“I am in the process of trying to be able to at least leave my state if not the country. It is ridiculous that the court has basically decided to allow thousands of women to die. This will cause tons of poor single mothers, orphans and teenage mothers. I thought the Right wanted 2 parent homes. It will cost millions in healthcare due to pregnancy complications and privatised health insurance. I’m scared this is just the beginning and in the coming years they will strip our rights down to nothing. We should be a country of progress but instead we are going backwards.” – Gen Y, Man, N/A

It’s Going to Make Us More Politically Motivated
Already generations of activists, Gen Z and Y are feeling spurred to get more involved in politics and to change the course of our current trajectory:

“I am going to get more involved in local politics and activism to force democrats to take action to protect abortion federally.” – Gen Z, Male, N/A

“It makes me want to be more politically active, help fund / support networks to help people seeking abortions in affected states.” – Gen Z, Female, N/A

“As a child of interracial marriage, I am furthermore scared that my mere existence will one day be deemed not a constitutional right. The problem that arises from this Supreme Court decision is not an isolated one by any means, and that is why I will never again take for granted the right to vote. Voting is the first and foremost actionable step every active citizen can take to drive change, and people cannot forget that or believe that their vote doesn’t matter. As we stand on the verge of democracy’s destruction, we need to believe in democracy in order to uphold it. Encourage those who vote based on their values to vote. At this point in our country, if you are voting based on partisan politics, you are voting against democracy.” – Gen Y, Female, NY

The Worries of Pregnancy Are Compounded
Pregnancy is a time to worry about the health of the baby, not whether restrictive rights will put the mother in a life-threatening situation:

“I am currently pregnant and worried that my unborn child’s life will take precedence over my own should something go wrong. I’m worried about having a future child just in case I have a complication and I could potentially die from something prevented by abortion.” – Gen Y, Female, Arizona

“I worry how an accidental pregnancy would effect my husband and I since we cannot afford children nor the medical care. Also, I’d have a high risk pregnancy and that sounds like a death sentence now.” – Gen Y, Female, California

Best Approaches to Birth Control Are Under Question
Weeks after Roe’s demise, many are reconsidering their approach to birth control amidst concerns pregnancies could lead to terrifying consequences:

“I’ve had surgery on my uterus that does not allow pregnancy implantation into my uterus. If I were to get pregnant, it would be ectopic and would require an abortion procedure or potentially risk my life. I already have two children and have had significant health complications from hormonal birth control. I’ve been looking into the option of a hysterectomy but I don’t have health insurance at the time and I know I won’t be able to afford it when federal student loan payments resume, so I am kind of just at a loss and trying to find a solution that is permanent and less fallible than the pill or condom methods.” – Gen Y, Female, N/A

“I had an OB/GYN appointment in July for a checkup, now I’ll be pursuing sterilization. My family has severe mental health problems, alzheimers, and postpartum depression. And seeing as we’re all extremely fertile and any other form of birth control makes me suicidal, this is my only protection now. I have never even thought about choosing abortion if I ended up pregnant, but not even having the option in any circumstance is terrifying.” – Gen Z, Female, N/A

“I’m really very concerned about my own ability to access birth control or ANY type of reproductive medicine/therapy in the future, and I’m incredibly concerned for my friends- those who have already started their families, those who want to start a family in the future, and those who have chosen to not have children. I have already started to request emergency contraception from my provider and will likely start to try and stock up on my actual birth control.” – Gen Y, Woman, Georgia

“I will need to ensure I never ever get pregnant. Went from considering tubal ligation to demanding a referral for it.” – Gen Y, Non-Binary, N/A

We’re Shifting Spending Power to Companies Who Support Our Right to Choose
Younger generations will show the strongest support (and their dollars) to companies and businesses who publicly show their support for abortion rights:

“I won’t visit, move to, attend business conferences in, etc. any state that bans or limits abortion. I also won’t buy from any company that does not support women’s rights — instead I’ll support those companies going out of their way to support women.” – Gen X, Female, NY

“Reproductive rights are human rights. Chipping away at  a person’s right to govern their body represents a significant step backwards for everyone. I’ll be more selective in choosing GYN/OB care providers, as well as employers and health insurers to make sure we share a vision of reproductive freedom.” – Gen Y, Female, NY

Fear the Ripple Effect on Our Democracy
The repercussions of Roe v Wade are reverberating around the world and left many questioning whether a knock-on effect will take place across other areas of our lives:

“This decision takes away the rights I have to my body, as well as those rights for every current and future American citizen. Roe also established the precedent of the right to privacy which has been used in later Court decisions related to gay marriage, contraception, interracial marriage, and sodomy laws, all of which are now at stake. Only four days after the Roe decision, Alabama has already used language in the decision to pass a law to de-transition and outlaw life-saving medical practices for transgender people under 18. Trans teens are not getting gender confirmation surgery, they are using hormone blockers, under the supervision of a physician, which are approved and supported by major medical organizations. Roe is connected to all other issues: medical privacy, sexual health, sexual relationships, contraception, racism, homophobia, sexism, transphobia. The impact of this decision cannot be overstated and will be felt for decades.” – Gen Z, Non-Binary, N/A

“Personally, I am not affected (as a cis white guy, you know, the thing) nearly as much as it does the women of this country. This is an unprecedented decision that has the entirety of our nation several steps back. Plus now, this emboldens the right to revoke other institutions. What’s next, gay marriage? Interacial marriage? Child labor laws? Will the draft make a horrifying return? The GOP establishment won’t stop here and we should be worried and take evasive action to stop them.” – Gen Y, Man, N/A

“This could be the spark that sets off a new ultra conservative avalanche that overturns other laws that protect the rights of women. We need to stand firm now to prevent this from happening.” – Gen Z, Male, NA

“Affirms my belief we’re heading for a truly, irreparably, dystopian future.” – Gen Z, Female, N/A

Vice Insights gathered feedback from our proprietary youth insights communities, VICE Voices and Mad Chatter. With one of the biggest global youth communities in the world, we spend countless hours listening to the voices of the next generations. If you want to do the same, contact us at insights@vice.com. 

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