A Brief History of Roe v. Wade

Since January 22, 1973, the Roe v. Wade ruling has been the cornerstone of the American abortion culture, setting an example for numerous countries that followed. On June 24, 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court in a 6 to 3 ruling, a move that pro-choice activists have feared for years. For most of our lives, the constitutional right to abortion has seemed relatively protected; there have always been anti-abortion activists, but for the most part, states upheld the right to abortion. Yet, with this sudden decision, the US is thrown into a tumultuous period of uncertainty and fear. To understand what comes next, we must understand what came before.

May 22, 1970: “Jane Roe” - a pseudonym used by 22-year-old Norma McCorvey - filed a lawsuit to challenge the Texas abortion law, which only allowed abortions if necessary to save the woman’s life. An argument was made for the potentially disastrous and damaging consequences for a woman like Roe, unable to care or provide for a baby, if they could not receive a legal abortion. Henry Wade, the Dallas County district attorney, was the defendant in the case, as a critical enforcer of the law in Texas.

June 1970: On the district court level, the abortion law was declared a violation of one’s right to privacy, as stated in the constitution, and therefore ruled illegal. Yet, the decision did not stop there, and eventually made its way to the highest US court, the Supreme Court. In 1971, when the abortion trial began at the Supreme Court level, the procedure was illegal in over half of US states.

January 22, 1973: The Supreme Court ruled that the Texas abortion law was constitutional, in turn making abortions legal throughout the United States. The 7-2 ruling deemed that it is unconstitutional to strip a woman of her right to terminate her pregnancy, under the Ninth Amendment. At this time, 6 of the sitting justices were appointed by Republican presidents, not much different than our Supreme Court today.

What did Roe v. Wade do?

Roe v. Wade decreed specific guidelines for abortion based on trimesters of pregnancy. In the first trimester, a woman had total control over whether or not she terminated her pregnancy. In the second trimester, abortion could be regulated, for health reasons, but not completely banned. In the third trimester, abortion could be banned by the state if a fetus can survive on its own, unless in cases where not having abortions could endanger a woman.

June 29, 1992: In Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, Pennsylvania abortion laws - including required notification of one’s spouse, 24-hour waiting periods, and required parental consent for minors - were challenged as unconstitutional. Although most provisions were deemed constitutional at the district court level, the provision regarding forced notification of one’s spouse rose to the Supreme Court, where it was not upheld. With a 5-4 decision, “undue burden” was enforced, which regulated abortions by determining if abortion laws in specific states imposed an “undue burden” (defined as a “substantial obstacle in the path of a woman seeking an abortion before the fetus attains viability”). The ruling for the most part reaffirmed Roe v. Wade, yet the upholding of certain provisions expanded the regulation states could put on abortions.

June 24, 2022: Almost 30 years later, the current Supreme Court overturned both Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey with a 6-3 vote. Around the country, the move was met with both outrage and celebration. Pro-life activists celebrate what they have been trying to achieve for decades, as state governments around the US race to enact tighter abortion laws and even total bans following the overturning. Pro-choice activists fear what will come next, as trigger laws enacted by states such as Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas will take effect in the next few days. Many of these laws enforce total bans on abortions, without exceptions for rape or incest. Although abortions remain protected in some US states and even with measures to expand the sale and distribution of abortion pills, the future of safe abortions in America is unclear. It is indisputable that this decision marks a monumental moment in US history, just as it did when it was first enacted, and for better or for worse, serves as a turning point in our nation’s regulation of its people and their lives.