Justice Clarence Thomas has written the first Supreme Court opinion in history which documents at length the eugenicist origins of abortion in America. What does this matter, and what does it mean for the future? There are simpler and more complex answers to those questions.The simple reason is that while the Court upheld a part of the Indiana law that requires respectful burial or cremation of human remains, it turned down an appeal to reinstate another part of the law that would ban abortions sought for reasons of sex-selection or disability. Thomas was rightly dismissive of Planned Parenthood’s disregard for fetal remains, writing in his Concurring Opinion: “I would have thought it could go without saying that nothing in the Constitution or any decision of this Court prevents a State from requiring abortion facilities to provide for the respectful treatment of human remains.” But Justice Thomas was determined to interpret the Court’s decision to turn down the appeal which would have banned sex-selective abortions.