Abortion: Roe v. Wade Essay Example

There are a multitude of arguments that will be discussed for centuries and the “right answer” still may never be found. In certain circumstances, all the facts and evidence in the world may not be enough to persuade someone on a topic. Abortion is one of many that has been argued since the 1970’s and remains a prevalent topic in today’s society. On January 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution protects a pregnant woman’s freedom to have an abortion without government restriction in the Roe v. Wade court case. Despite this occurring almost fifty years ago, the popularity of this concern is far from in the past. The famous Roe v. Wade court case that covers women and unborn children’s abortion rights is credited with the rise of pro-life movements and protests across the nation.

Roe v. Wade was first initiated in 1969 by Jane Roe who had just become pregnant with her third child and wanted an abortion. In Texas at the time abortions were only legal if necessary to save the mother’s life, therefore, Roe and her attorneys filed a lawsuit on the district attorney, Henry Wade (Reno). Texas appealed to the Supreme Court which issued a seven to two decision in favor of Roe. Although it might have appeared as baby steps compared to the initial law, the battle for Wade’s side of the argument did not stop there. In 1980, “Harris v. McRae Court rules that the right to an abortion does not require the government to pay for the procedure” (Rovner 1). Rovner writes about the popularity of anti-abortion rights rising and separate court cases that make attempts to alter this law in her article published twenty-five years after Roe v. Wade. In addition to these laws, in 1989, “Webster v Reproductive Health Services of Missouri First-ever approval of substantial restrictions to abortions, that seemingly invites states to pass laws that could be used to strike down Roe v Wade” (Rovner 4). With the addition of these court cases, the pro-life crowd is fueled and begins to grow in support around these laws. Decisions such as court cases may sway certain states towards the liking of pro-life. For example, In Oklahoma, there was eighteen abortion clinics in 1982. In 2014, there were only three clinics that remained open. Now in 2022 with one of the most recent anti-abortion laws, Oklahoma bans abortion after the mother is six weeks into her pregnancy. The response to opposing Roe v. Wade is seeing tremendous support in numerous states and may create attention seen at the national level.

Declaring abortion one hundred percent beneficial or denouncing it as completely wrong will likely never be agreed on in today’s society of stubbornness and closed-minded people.   Abortion was always in question before it was officially legal, however, the United States has never experienced a complete ban on abortion. In the book Her Body Our Laws, Michelle Oberman travels to El Salvador, the only country to ban abortion without exception, except to preserve the life of the mother. After the long research conducted by Oberman, she concludes that, “Honestly, I don’t see how we’ll ever resolve our ideological differences'' (Oberman 172). Although Oberman is researching primarily for how life would look like without abortion, she understands both sides are immensely arguable. The pro-life world’s anger is fueled by the opinion that abortion legalizes killing. On the contrary, the pro choice world matches it with the insistence upon the full legal autonomy of women (Oberman). With the rise in laws that are limiting the freedom of abortions, fertility rates are also drastically changing. These statistics provided by surveys from The American Journal of Health are affected by the dependency of a state or nation wide ban. “States legalizing abortion experienced a 4% decline in fertility relative to states where the legal status of abortion was unchanged” (Levine et al. 4). In addition, if women did not have to travel inbetween states to obtain an abortion, rates would reach 11% (Levine et al.). There are countless loopholes around this system if a state only law is created. With Oklahoma containing a large pro-life population, the odds of abortion potentially being banned in the state are not unlikely. However, the results caused by this with bordering states still remaining open to abortions might not solve every problem in sight.

“The description "pro-life" was adopted by the right-to-life (anti-abortion) movement in the United States following the Supreme Court 1973 decision Roe v. Wade” (Reno 3). Every year following Roe v. Wade pro-life supporters travel from different states and even countries to attend the world renowned March For Life. March for Life is a peaceful protest held by the March for Life organization. In the fall of 1973, Nellie Gray and a group of other pro-life women gathered at Nellie’s home to discuss what to do on the one year anniversary of the court case (Joffe). The first march was held the next year with approximately twenty thousand people in attendance. March for life organizers estimated around 400,000 people in 2011 and 650,000 people in 2013 (Joffe). This statistic shows an enormous amount of development in the pro-life comunity with people from all across the nation and world traveling to Washington D.C. to support. The pro-life population is bonded by this event where everyone present is attending for the same reasons and intentions of what they fight for and believe in.

Despite Roe v Wade taking place half a century ago, the rights for women and unborn children in abortions from this court case still attributes to the enormous growth in pro-life movements seen in present day. Like what Oberman said in her book, pro-choice and pro-life sides may never come to see eye to eye. The era of fighting abortion rights has the potential to last another few decades into the future. What may have just seemed like any other court case in 1973 is the cause of starting hundreds of peaceful protests and clubs that fight for anti-abortion. Right or wrong, this court case is heavily influential in today’s society surrounding the topic of women and unborn children’s human rights.