Roe v. Wade
At a glance:
- Series: Great Events from History: North American Series
- Categories: Women’s Issues, Social Issues, Reform, and Protest, Law, Legal History, Courts
- Subcategories: Civil Rights, Minority Rights, Minorities, Court Cases, Rulings, Appeals, Feminism, Feminists, Women’s Rights, Gender Issues, Sexism, Supreme Court, U.S., Human Rights, Reproductive Rights, Abortion
- Curriculum: American History 1951-present, Women’s History
- Geographical Location: Washington, D.C.
- Date: January 22, 1973
Article abstract: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that state laws prohibiting abortion are unconstitutional.
Summary of Event
By the early 1970’s, abortion laws in the United States had become an issue of public controversy. Among the factors promoting this interest were concern for overpopulation, the vigorous women’s rights movement, the overwhelming approval of physicians for liberalized abortion policies, and awareness that approximately one million illegal abortions occurred in the United States each year. Although by 1973, many states had revised...
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