American History: Fighting for the Freedom of Choice

Before the 1973 ruling of the case of Roe v Wade, the estimated average number of illegal abortions every year ranged from 200,000 to 1.5 million. The methods used were violently dangerous including women ingesting toxic substances such as bleach and detergents which often times was ineffective. Women around the country were concerned that the anti-abortion laws conflicted with a person’s right to privacy and equal protection given by the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments of the Constitution. Gale University’s William Sullivan explains ”The right to abort unborn children is not specifically protected by the Constitution, and prior to 1973, abortion legislation had been understood to be limited to the power of the states per the Tenth

Historically, abortion was not regulated in the United States until the 20th century. Prior to the 1900s, abortion occurred regularly and was performed by midwives, along with other reproductive health care procedures (Ehrenreich & English, 2010). The rise of the medical industry and a growing immigrant population led to more interest amongst doctors in restricting abortion (Davis, 1983; Solinger, 2015). The American Medical Association began to lobby for the criminalization of abortion and the medicalization of birth, claiming to be interested in protecting women from the harsh chemicals used to induce abortion (Solinger, 2015). Solinger (2015) writes:

Prior to the landmark case of Roe vs. Wade, abortion was legal in the United States under common law and with several stipulations. It was legal under the advice of medical personnel or in the attempt to save a mother’s life. Though abortion were widely available it was considered a secretive and “back alley” procedure that threatened the life of the patient and the persons conducting the abortion. In 1965, illegal abortions made up one-sixth of all pregnancy- and childbirth-related deaths. A survey conducted between 1965 and 1967 found that 8 in 10 low-income women in New York City who had an abortion attempted a dangerous self-induced procedure (planedparenthood.com).

” , the ‘white man’ has conditioned those who fought in the wars, Tayo is the only one to realise that the native American soldiers never had any freedom, and are still being influenced and controlled by the ‘white man’. Even when the war is over Tayo’s comrades blame themselves, not realising their emotions and knowledge has been conditioned. Tayo recalls in a dream the pain he felt when forced to kill a group of what he is told are Japanese soldiers however swears his uncle Josiah was in the crowd, “Tayo started screaming because it wasn’t a Jap, it was Josiah, eyes shrinking back into the skull and all their shining black light glazed over by death” , Tayo had no freedom to choose, he was forced by the ‘white man’ to kill a group of innocent

Did you know that abortion is common for around 1 of every 3 women in the United States (Camosy 17)? Abortion became a bigger problem in The United States in 1973 when it was made legal. Roe v. Wade was a case in Texas where a woman named Norma McCorvey wanted to have an abortion. She filed a lawsuit on behalf of herself and every other pregnant woman saying that it is an “invasion of privacy”(Roe v. Wade, The Free Dictionary). In 1973, the Supreme Court had ruled that the Texas law was unlawful. They allowed abortion to be legal, but it was too late because she had already had her child two years beforehand (Roe v. Wade, The Free Dictionary). Since Roe v. Wade, there have been around 55 million abortions. Twenty-one percent of pregnancies

In 1973, the US Supreme Court declared abortion a nationwide fundamental right through a trial called Roe vs. Wade and protected this right underneath the Fourteenth Amendment, more specifically, the right to privacy. A basic human right, especially one outlined by the Supreme Court, must never run at risk or threat chiefly because not everyone agrees with it. Under no circumstances should a pregnancy ever adjudge mandatory. Abortion is a Constitutional right and as a nation we must fight to give the right and freedom of safe abortions to women all around the nation, make birth control and sex education accessible to women, and raise awareness about the topic itself. (LawCornell)

Believe it or not, women were not always entitled to abortion. Until 1973, when it became legalized, women would terminate their pregnancies through dangerous methods. Some included back alley abortions or at home procedures. Unfortunately, most of these ended in complete disaster, leaving women injured or needing medical attention. Since abortion was an unsafe option overall, it seems that women would stop fighting for the cause, but despite the potential peril they continued their fight. The idea that abortion creates emotional scars and is a risk to women's health, is what troubles many young adults considering it.

Supreme court struck down all criminal abortion laws when they realized that a women’s decision to terminate a pregnancy was protected under the “right of privacy” founded in the Fourteenth Amendment (Justia US

In the 1960’s, women marched and lobbied for their abortion rights. Abortion in the U.S. was practiced until about the 1800’s when most states banned it unless it was fatal , The banning of abortion took a great toll on a lot of women (Our bodies ourselves”). Since 1954 American women have been risking illegal abortion (Swanson, Kara W.) and doctors have put their lives on the line to perform this life saving procedure (Kellogg, Cecily). In 1992, the Supreme Court required Physicians to provide true information on abortion so that women would rethink their decision ( Mariner, Wendy K). There were laws made that doctors and physicians had to follow, such laws told the physicians exactly what to say no matter the patient’s health or needs (Mariner, Wendy K) Doctors have an oath to care for their patients and their responsibility is to take care of their patients and treat them to their specific needs ( Swanson, Kara W). Women can endure a lot of physical and mental pain while they are pregnant. During pregnancy the mother may endure back pain, breast enlargement, body pain, constipation, hemorrhoids, and morning sickness ("Pregnancy." Body). A mother as a responsibility to love and care for her child, unless the mother was raped and conceved the baby through the tragic event or the mother is put in a fatal state due to her pregnancy and many

In the United States there is something we have fought for a long time to achieve our freedom.In the 1900`s the minority aka “the black slave” were enslaved and tricked .When the emancipation proclamation was signed and released the minority from their enslavement , however the minority did not know how to make a living which forced them to go back to the “white man”. On top of all that many good people died fighting for freedom we never had. Today in we still don't have an equal amount of freedom in the united states. Our freedom should have been given to us a long time ago right,?

Up until 1973, women were not granted the right to abort a baby (McLemore & Levi, 2011). Abortion was deemed as illegal. That was merely 43 years ago, meaning that women who did not want to proceed with their pregnancy went through illegal, or unsafe, abortions. According to Lisa Haddad (2009), who was in clinical when she wrote this

In the time that abortion was illegal, women would go to great lengths for abortions. Depending on your socioeconomic status, it was nearly impossible to get one, let alone a safe one. This unfortunately led to women attempting self induced abortions which in turn took a toll on women’s lives and health. Leading up to the famous decision of the Supreme Court on Roe v. Wade in 1973, physicians and other medical practitioners practiced illegal abortions, risking fines, loss of licenses, and imprisonment. The health industry was largely effected in these years and so were lives of many pregnant women. By the late 1800’s abortions were banned in most states with the exception of saving the life of the

Forty-three years ago, on January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court made abortion legal across the whole country through two cases: Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton (“About Abortion”). The Court claimed that legalizing abortion protected the “right to privacy” guaranteed by the Constitution, but could not find any actual passage in the

Abortion is a basic women 's right. Research shows that abortions have been performed since the time of the Ancient Egyptians as abortion procedures were found in the medical document Ebers Papyrus written around 1550 BC. The practice of abortion continued through the 1800’s and did not become illegal until 1900. Roe v. Wade later legalized abortions across the country and now we have laws and regulations that keep the mother informed and also allow her to have access to the safe and legal abortions she has a right to.

In the year of 2008, 40 percent of women had legal access to abortion center that would perform and abortion without needing an explanation. Out of the 56 million abortions performed each year about 45 percent have been performed unsafely resulting in about 68,000 deaths. This explains why it is vital to keep abortion legal. It should not boil down to mothers having to take matter into the hand of someone who is unqualified. unfortunately some women may feel the need take matters into their own hands by trying to preform this act on themselves. Now that abortions are allowed by law, it is said to be one of the safest procedures in medicine today. Since abortions are now legal women can be in the professional care of a doctor. For instance,