ROE v. WADE: What Does It Mean?
On January 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court voted 7-2 to strike down a Texas law prohibiting abortion, citing that it violated a woman's right to privacy. This landmark decision is known as Roe v. Wade. What the Ruling Found States are forbidden to interfere with a woman's access to abortion during the 1st trimester of pregnancy. States can only regulate 2nd trimester abortions to protect a woman's health. States can ban 3rd trimester abortions except if a woman's life is in jeopardy. A fetus is not protected as a "person" under the 14th amendment. A woman's right to choose is a fundamental right and has the highest level of Constitutional protection. Life Before Roe v. Wade Before Roe was decided, 2/3 of states permitted abortions only when the woman's life was threatened. The majority of other states had only slightly more liberal
abortion laws. As a result: 1.2 million women a year had illegal, often dangerous abortions. 5,000 women died annually from complications from illegal abortions. The Impact of the Decision After Roe, women could decide when and if they were prepared to be mothers. No longer restricted by unwanted, poorly timed pregnancies, women had increased
opportunities for advancement in economic, political, and social spheres. However, an increasingly conservative Supreme Court has allowed numerous
restrictions on a woman's right to choose in recent years, including waiting periods, mandatory "education" on the dangers of abortion, parental consent laws, and a ban on public funding for uninsured women's abortions. The right to choose is currently in jeopardy due to President Bush's strong
anti-choice stance. He has appointed opponents of abortion to critical Cabinet posts. Furthermore, he has said that he would appoint Supreme Court justices with beliefs similar to Antonin Scalia, the Court's most dedicated anti-choice justice. The Court currently supports abortion by only a narrow margin, and if Bush appoints even one abortion opponent, Roe v. Wade could be overturned.
| 
