Roe vs. Wade

This case is THE  most famous related to women's rights. It changed history and women's reproductive rights in the United States.

'Jane Roe', an unmarried woman, wanted to end her pregnancy safely and legally. January 22, 1973 the United States Supreme Court declared its decision in this case overturning the Texas law and for the first time, it was acknowledged that a woman's right to choose whether or not to terminate her pregnancy was included in the right to privacy. Previously, practically all states outlawed abortion with exception of cases of incest, rape, fetal anomaly and if the woman's life was at stake as a result of her pregnancy. Roe relinquished this restriction for women and made abortion services safer and more accessible to women in the 1970s through today.

In Roe vs. Wade the Supreme Court ruled that:

 "a state's interest in protecting maternal health is not compelling until the
second trimester of pregnancy and its interest in potential life is not
'compelling' until vitality, the point in pregnancy at which there is a reasonable
possibility for the sustained survival of the fetus outside the womb. A state
may - but it not required to - prohibit abortion after vitality, except when
it is necessary to protect a woman's life or health."

In coming to this decision, the Supreme Court revisited past cases that proved that the government could not interfere with certain decisions regarding procreation, marriage and other facets of family life. For example, in the case Griswold vs. Connecticut (1965), Planned Parenthood League of Connecticut was on trial for distributing contraceptives to married couples. The Supreme Court ruled that making contraceptives available to married couples was infringing upon their right to privacy. By 1972, single people were also included and provided with contraceptives.

The late 1960s were a time when many states began rethinking the abortion ban. Many groups, including health care providers, clergy members, woman's rights activists lobbied their state legislatures to overturn bans and/or limits on abortion. Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington repealed abortion bans between 1967 and 1973.


Information for this blog post was provided by ppfa.org
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