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Mikayla Noble
Research Paper: Before and After Roe v Wade
Dr. Benjamin Fitzpatrick
10/16/2017
Before Roe v Wade abortion was only legal in certain states and it was basically
impossible to get unless the baby was conceived via rape or incest. Thanks to a lawsuit filed by
a Texas woman in 1969, Roe v Wade was eventually passed in 1973 because of the due process
clause of the fourteenth amendment that guaranteed women a right to privacy regarding their
personal decisions about their lives. Roe v Wade made it legal for a woman to get an abortion
in any state for any reason. Since the landmark case, many laws have been passed to restrict
access to abortions such as tighter regulation for abortion clinics; requirements to show
mothers fetal ultrasounds prior to abortions; and laws about fetal gestation limits.
Before I start digging into the landmark Supreme Court case Roe v Wade, the laws and
regulations that surround it, and its impact on the country before and since its passing, I think it
is important to explain what exactly the procedure of abortion is to understand why it is
necessary, as well as why it is so controversial.
Abortion is a procedure done to end a pregnancy, usually before the fetus can survive
outside of the womb, although some abortions done for medical reasons can be done past the
age of viability if a fetus is incapable of life outside the womb. There are two types of abortions:
clinical and medical.
Clinical abortions are done in an abortion clinic using instruments and procedures to pull
the fetus from the uterus. The procedure is 100% effective in death and expulsion of the fetus
and is one of the safest ways to terminate a pregnancy because it ensure death and removal of
the fetus. There are two procedures generally used and the method performed generally
depends on the length of the pregnancy. Pregnancies between 5 and 13 weeks are generally
terminated using a suction technique where a device with strong suction is inserted through
the vagina and cervix and into the uterus where a strong suction rips the fetus apart and
removes it from the uterus. After the fetus is suctioned out, the uterus is scraped to remove
any tissue that might have been left behind. This is quite possibly the safest abortion technique
to have if you are going to get one because it definitely removes all parts of the fetus from the
uterus. The second clinical abortion procedure is called a D&E, or dilation and evacuation
abortion. In this procedure sticks of a substance called laminaria is inserted into the cervix to
dilate it. When it gets to ten centimeters dilated, the abortionist uses a clamp with rows of tiny
sharp teeth to dismember the fetus piece by piece. Each limb and body part is removed until
only the head is left inside the uterus. The abortionist then crushes the head and pulls it out.
After all the body parts are moved the abortionist then goes over all the body parts and
essentially reassembles the fetus to make sure that there are no parts left behind. This is
important because of there is any of the fetus left in the uterus then it can cause a major
infection. After everything is removed the abortionist suctions out the placenta and scrapes the
wall of the uterus to unsure that it is empty. The procedure is then complete.
The second type of abortion is called a medical abortion. In these procedures the
expectant mother is given a medication that makes your uterus expel the fetus like a
miscarriage. Medical abortion uses two pills: mifepristone and misoprostol. The first pill,
mifepristone, is administered at the abortion clinic and works by blocking your body’s natural
progesterone, which is what a pregnancy needs to grow normally. The next pill, misoprostol, is
taken at home 6-48 hours after the first pill, and works by causing your uterus to cramp and
bleed to empty the uterus. It feels like a heavy, crampy period and is very similar to having an
early miscarriage. This abortion procedure is very effective but is still less effective than an in
clinic abortion. For people 8 weeks pregnant or less it works 98 out of 100 times, for 8 to 9
week pregnancies it works 96-100 times, and for 9 to 10 week pregnancies it works 93 out of
100 times (plannedparenthood.org). If this kind of abortion is ineffective you can always take
more medicine or have an in clinic abortion.
There are pros and cons to both kinds of abortions. The good thing about clinical
abortions is that they are 100% effective in both killing and eliminating the fetus. However, with
early pregnancies some people prefer the medical abortions because they are less invasive and
feel like a more natural occurrence since they are similar to a miscarriage and can be performed
in the comfort of your home with whatever support you feel like you need. The decision to
have an abortion and what kind is best for each woman is an incredibly personal decision and
they should do whatever works best for them at whatever stage of pregnancy they are in.
Life Before Roe
Given all the stated reasons why abortion is a great and even necessary option to have,
you would think that people would have been on board with it. Think again. The government
started really taking interest in a woman’s reproductive rights in the 188
1
0’s and by the time
the
2
1950’s and 60’ arrived, the anti-choice movement was in full swing. The US Supreme Court
did not any way invent legal abortion or abortion in general. In fact, at the time of the US’
founding and for decades after, abortion had a long history in America and was widely
accepted. In the mid 1800’s abortion was made illegal under most circumstances but by the
1960’s states were beginning to change their strict abortion laws; by the time Roe v Wade came
along it was already permissible to get abortions in 17 states for reasons besides to save the life
of the mother.
Meanwhile, these laws were missing the underlying reason for abortions: unplanned
