On January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court of the United States issued its decision in the famous abortion rights case, Roe v. Wade. To help us look at this important and controversial decision we turned to Kermit Hall’s The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions which offers lively and insightful accounts of over four hundred of the most important cases ever argued before the Court.
Roe. v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), argued 13 Dec. 1971, reargued 11 Oct. 1972, decided 22 Jan. 1973 by vote of 7 to 2; Blackmun for the Court, Douglas, Stewart, and Burger concurring, White and Rehnquist in dissent.
After the middle of the nineteenth century most states, under the prodding of physicians wishing to establish the scientific stature of their activities, adopted laws severely restricting the availability of abortion. The so-called sexual revolution of the 1950s and 1960s, which fostered increased access to contraceptives and the development of contraceptive drugs, also resulted in an increasing number of situations in which women desired abortions. (more…)
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