Around the same time that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion on the constitutionality of Roe v. Wade leaked, journalist Ezra Klein asked what conservatives envision as a post-liberal world. This describes a social order more firmly rooted in tradition, what Ezra’s expert guest defined as resetting the country’s social default to one that emphasizes the strength of the family and the value of relaying history across generations. These details are not so important as the revelation that they stem not from a difference in the perception of the problems that erode our stability — but instead their causes. And that problem, envisioned by the Supreme Court, is the 40-year implication of the fundamental right to bodily autonomy.

Hate and control are politically expedient, and now that Roe v. Wade is truly overturned, we feel a growing call to arms. That same guest that Ezra interviewed perceived this tug of war as an easily separable conflict; he viewed the taming of liberalism — modernism we take for granted — as a cost-free win for the right, and by extension, everyone (whether they knew it or not).

We’re owed our moment of mourning for the loss dealt to our dearest friends and family. It’s a shame that the long road forward will be down the same road of bones as the political warriors two generations ago. But this time will be different. And the final step toward health care as a right, and the constitutional recognition of the dignity of women everywhere, will be defined first by its permanence. The heroes of our ancestors asked us to adhere to our principles and our unity even when all hope is lost. They pointed to our capacity for resilience, determination and idealism; that the prize of many tears, many hours, and many hands, is a much more perfect union.