Culture Wars, Abortion, and the Supreme Court

Western societies are at a crossroads, grappling with profound questions of identity, values, and governance. The culture wars that dominate public discourse reflect deeper ideological divides that are unlikely to be resolved in the near future. Constitutional courts, as arbiters of these conflicts, play a critical role in shaping the course of these debates. The author cites the example of abortion as an issue deeply embedded in the culture wars. In American political and legal reality, this issue has been resolved not by popularly elected institutions, but by the Supreme Court, whose decisions have not only failed to defuse cultural disputes, but have, on the contrary, intensified them. However, the reliance on judicial resolution also highlights the limitations of political institutions in addressing contentious issues. As societies become more polarized, the challenge is to find common ground and foster dialogue across ideological divides. Only then can Western democracies navigate the complexities of the modern era and chart a path forward that reflects their shared values and aspirations. Moreover, research conducted shortly after the Dobbs decision confirms the commonsense intuition that state legislation is much more in tune with public opinion in a given state and helps defuse one front of the culture war – that of abortion.