Roe V. Wade: Breaking The Barrier to Fight for Rights

Kiley L’Esperance

Historical Paper

Junior Division

Paper Length: 2,216 words

Disclaimer:

Abortion is a very controversial topic that everyone has their own opinion on. The contents of my paper do not reflect any bias or my own opinions on abortion.

Thesis Statement:

Even before Roe V. Wade, abortion has been one of the most controversial topics in U.S society. Abortion is legal today, but in the 1960s and 1970s most states in the U.S didn't allow abortion, including Texas where Linda Coffee, , and Norma McCorvey lived and felt that the abortion laws were wrong and wanted to get abortion legalized. Many people disagreed with these women and wanted abortion to remain illegal. Despite all the controversy and those who fought against them, they still put up a fight for what they believed in.

The Plaintiffs of Roe:

Norma McCorvey, also known as Jane Roe, was 16 when she married and became pregnant with her first child. When she was pregnant with their first child she moved in with her mother alleging that her husband, Woody McCorvey had assaulted her. She divorced her husband before her daughter was born and gave custody of her daughter to her mother. She then had another child in 1967 that she gave up for adoption right after birth.1

McCorvey got pregnant with her third child in 1969. McCorvey was only 21 years old and felt she was unable to raise a child, so the thought of abortion crossed her mind. At the time,

McCorvey lived in Texas and the state laws only allowed for cases of or incest, and in some cases to save the life of the mother. McCorvey made a plan to get an illegal abortion,

1 Catholic News Service, editor. "Norma McCorvey, Plaintiff in Roe Ruling Who Later Became Pro-Life, Dies." CatholicPhilly.com, Catholic Philly, 21 Feb. 2017, catholicphilly.com/2017/02/news/obituaries/ norma-mccorvey-plaintiff-in-roe-ruling-who-later-became-pro-life-dies/. Accessed 22 Jan. 2020.

but the clinic that she was going to go to had gotten shut down before she could. Clueless on what to do, McCorvey asked some friends for their advice. Her friends told her to lie and say that she had been raped. This did not work because there was no evidence or police report of a rape.

McCorvey then later during the trial gave her baby up for adoption2.

Marsha and David King, also known as Mary and , was a married couple and another plaintiff on the case of Roe V. Wade. Marsha King was advised not to get pregnant because she had a neural-chemical condition. Had she gotten pregnant her doctor believed that it would impair her health, but she wouldn’t die. Mary Doe’s doctor had told her to not go on birth control which is why she was on the case of Roe V. Wade. If Mary Doe were to get pregnant she most likely would have to consider abortion and was afraid of getting an illegal abortion.3

Henry Wade:

Henry Wade is mainly known as the lawyer who prosecuted Jack Ruby, the man who shot Lee Harvey Oswald. Wade was elected for county prosecutor in 1950 and continued until 19874. Wade holds the record for felony conviction rates of 92%. He had requested the death penalty 30 times and had achievered those sentances 29 out of 30 times. Wade was on the case of Roe V. Wade because he was Dallas county prosecutor at the time and the state of

Texas was being sued. Henry Wade was a defendant and was being represented by Jay Floyd and John Tolle.5

2NCC Staff, editor. "On This Day, the Roe V. Wade Decision." National Constitution Center, 22 Jan. 2018, constitutioncenter.org/blog/ landmark-cases-roe-v-wade. Accessed 21 Jan. 2020. 3 The United States, U.S. Supreme Court (U.S.). Roe v. Wade. United States Reports, vols. 70-18. U.S Supreme Court, www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/1971/ 70-18_12-13-1971.pdf. 4 Rosenwald, Michael S. "Roe V. Wade's Forgotten Loser: The Remarkable Story of Dallas Prosecutor Henry Wade." , 5 Sept. 2018, www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2018/08/21/ roe-v-wades-forgotten-loser-the-story-of-dallas-prosecutor-henry-wade/. Accessed 19 Dec. 2019. 5 The Washington Spectator in Politics. "Who Was Wade in Roe V. Wade?" Washinton Spectator, 20 Jan. 2016, washingtonspectator.org/who-was-henry-wade/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.

The Lawyers of Roe:

Sarah Weddington was one of the lawyers in the case of Roe V. Wade arguing the case of Roe, however when she was a law student in 1967 she got pregnant. Weddington at the time was unmarried and was struggling to get by on her own. Weddington was working three jobs while in college so she felt she didn't have the time to care for a child. She lived in Texas where abortion was illegal. She then heard of an abortion clinic in New Mexico. Weddington then went to the clinic and got an abortion. She wasn’t given any anesthesia during the procedure. The clinic then gave her antibiotics and Weddington recovered in about a week.6

Weddington was a part of a group of graduate students at the University of Texas studying abortion. In this group, they would gather information about abortion providers in states in which abortion was legal (California and New York) and states where it wasn’t. People would call the group and ask them where they could go to get an abortion. They would consider their research and tell them the safest places to go. The group wanted to distribute their information to newspapers, but they were worried that they would be charged as accomplices of abortion, which was a crime back then.7

Linda Coffee was another lawyer on the side of Roe. Coffee grew up going to a southern baptist church where her grandfather was decon. Church and religion was a very important factor in Coffee’s life. In high school, the students at Coffee’s school were required to watch a film on abortion. After watching the film Coffee felt that it was important for women to have the option of abortion. Linda Coffee had enrolled at Rice University in 1961 and was considering careers in math, german, and medicine. She then chose to go into law and graduated from the

6 Weddington, Sarah Ragle. A Question of Choice. New York, Penguin Books, 1993. 7 Reaves, Jessica. "Interview: Sarah Weddington." Time, 16 Jan. 2003, content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,409103,00.html. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.

Austin school of law. Coffee also had wanted to go into domestic-relations, but she had an internship at an legal aid society in Austin that gave women disadvantages. Linda Coffee did identify as , but was not open about it.8

Coffee later decided that she wanted to challenge the Texas abortion laws, but she had no plaintiff. Then in January of 1970 Coffee got a call from a friend saying that an unhappily pregnant woman had stopped by his office for legal help. Her name was Norma McCorvey.

Norma McCorvey and Linda Coffee met right away and Coffee was determined that McCorvey would be the plaintiff. About a month earlier Coffee had gotten in contact with another young lawyer that she had gone to law school with, Sarah Weddington. Coffee and Weddington both disagreed with the abortion laws and wanted it to be legal. Coffee then had asked Weddington to be her partner on the case.

Abortion Laws Before Roe V. Wade:

In the late 19th century abortion was legal in the U.S. A woman could usually get an abortion before they could feel the movement of the fetus, this is typically around the 4th month of pregnancy. Some of the abortion regulations started in the 1820s and the 1830s. These regulations dealt with dangerous pills that were being used to induce abortion. Even though they were proven to be fatal to women, the drugs were still being sold9.

In the 1850s, most of the people that were born in America were pro-life because they believed that with all the immigration in the US, declining birth rates would decrease the natural- born citizen's population. Then in 1869, the catholic churches would excommunicate women if

8 Prager, Joshua. "Roe V. Wade's Secret Heroine Tells Her Story." Vanityfair, 19 Jan. 2017, www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/01/ roe-v-wades-secret-heroine-tells-her-story. Accessed 16 Feb. 2020. 9 History.com Editors, editor. "Roe V. Wade." History.com, 19 May 2019, www.history.com/topics/womens-rights/roe-v-wade. Accessed 28 Jan. 2020.

they got an abortion at any stage of pregnancy. It wasn't until 1850 when most of the states across the country had banned abortion.10 Abortion Protests:

In 1969, a radical feminist group called the Redstockings were very upset that the abortion hearings were only featuring male speakers while discussing a women’s issue. They held a speakout in New York City on March, 21st, 1969. They continued to fight for abortion laws to change. In February of 1969, the Redstockings members disrupted a New York legislative hearing about abortion11.

On April 16, 1972, about 10,000 people gathered in New York city’s Central Park to protest the New York abortion laws. New York was one of the very few states in the U.S that abortion was legal. This was nine months before the Supreme Court made its decision to legalize abortion.

12

The Trial:

In June 1970, the case of Roe V. Wade began in Texas. When Roe V. Wade went to court, the three-judge panel anonymously agreed that the abortion law was unconstitutional, but didn’t act to stop it. Roe V. Wade then went to the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice on the case was Warren E. Burger, with Associate Justices Willam O. Douglas, William J. Brennan,

Potter Stewart, Byron R. White, Thurgood Marshall, and Harry A. Blackmun13.

10 History.com Editors, editor. "Roe V. Wade." History.com, 19 May 2019, www.history.com/topics/womens-rights/roe-v-wade. Accessed 28 Jan. 2020. 11Napikoski, Linda. "The 1969 Redstockings Abortion Speakout." ThoughtCo., 19 Feb. 2019, www.thoughtco.com/abortion-speak-out-3528238. Accessed 10 Jan. 2020. 12Williams, Daniel K. "What You Don't Know About the Abortion Fight Before Roe v. Wade." Time, 4 Jan. 2016, time.com/4154084/anti-abortion-pre-roe/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020. 13The United States, U.S. Supreme Court (U.S.). Roe v. Wade. United States Reports, vols. 70-18. U.S Supreme Court, www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/1971/

The case sat for a year and a half until December 13th, 1971 when the Supreme Court heard arguments. Defense attorney Jay Floyd told Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee, “It’s an old joke, but when a man argues against two beautiful ladies like this, they are going to have the last word.”14

All of the justices on the case agreed that the law was unconstitutional, but the case sat for more time. This time the case sat because Justices Hugo Black and John Harlan Jr retired and had not yet been replaced. Lewis F. Powell and William Rehnquist then joined the court, but it wasn’t until 1972 that the court heard arguments again15. The court announced their decision on January 22, 1973, with a 7 to 2 majority vote in favor of Roe. Byron White and William

Rehnquist voted against Roe. Back in August of 1972, Americans were against abortion 46% to

42%, but after the trial, in April of 1973, Americans favored Roe 52% to 41%.16

Even though abortion was now legal, the court did set some rules for abortion. The first trimester was up to the mother of the child. The second trimester the government could regulate, but not ban. However, the third trimester was the state’s decision if you could get an abortion.17

Abortion Laws Today:

Since Roe V. Wade, abortion has advanced throughout the years to make abortions safer for women. Before abortion was legalized, abortion procedures had a one in six death rate. Abortion over time became one of the safest procedures in the U.S, with a safety rate of

70-18_12-13-1971.pdf. 14When Abortion Became Legal/ Roe V. Wade. YouTube, uploaded by Mr.Beat, 19 Feb. 2017, www.bing.com/videos/ search?q=when+abortion+became+legal&docid=608054913347161244&mid=C2BCD0AEF5AFEF4D CD5FC2BCD0AEF5AFEF4DCD5F&view=detail&FORM=VIRE. Accessed 9 Jan. 2020. 15 When Abortion Became Legal/ Roe V. Wade. YouTube, uploaded by Mr.Beat, 19 Feb. 2017, www.bing.com/videos/ search?q=when+abortion+became+legal&docid=608054913347161244&mid=C2BCD0AEF5AFEF4D CD5FC2BCD0AEF5AFEF4DCD5F&view=detail&FORM=VIRE. Accessed 9 Jan. 2020. 16Roe V. Wade, Explained. YouTube, uploaded by Newsy, 13 July 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HZj8Qp4p2A. Accessed 17 Jan. 2020. 17 Roe V. Wade, Explained. YouTube, uploaded by Newsy, 13 July 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HZj8Qp4p2A. Accessed 17 Jan. 2020.

over 99%. Women can also receive support throughout the procedures from medical professionals. Since abortion has became legal, about one in four women will get an abortion18.

Today forty states require a licensed physician to give abortions, nineteen states require abortions to be given at hospitals, and seventeen states require a second physician to be present during the procedure19.

Eighteen states even require that women take free counseling sessions before an abortion . During the counseling session they bring up how the fetus can feel pain to see if the women is mentally ready for the abortion20.

The Impact of Roe V. Wade:

Roe V. Wade impacted everyone in a different way based on their feelings towards abortion. After the law was passed some people choose to fight for what they believe in and try to get rid of the law or fight to keep the law up. In October of 1973, a group of 30 pro-life leaders who disagreed with Roe V. Wade gathered to raise awareness and try and stop it. Once Roe won they then created the march for life. The march for life is an annual march that takes place in Washington, D.C protesting Roe V. Wade. The first march for life was in January 1974, around the year anniversary of Roe V. Wade21.

On the march for life of 1987, a blizzard hit Washington D.C and 10,000 people marched in the blizzard to stand up for what they believe in. In August of 1995, Norma McCorvey publicly

18 . "Roe V. Wade: The Constitutional Right to Access Safe, Legal Abortion." Planned Parenthood, www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/ abortion/roe-v-wade. 19 Guttmatcher. "An Overview of Abortion Laws." Guttmatcher, 1 Feb. 2020, www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/overview-abortion-laws. Accessed 16 Feb. 2020. 20 Guttmatcher. "An Overview of Abortion Laws." Guttmatcher, 1 Feb. 2020, www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/overview-abortion-laws. Accessed 16 Feb. 2020. 21 About the March for Life. marchforlife.org/about-the-march-for-life/. Accessed 15 Feb. 2020

quit her job at an abortion clinic, became a pro-life advocate, and a participant in the march for life marches. This year on January 24 was the 47th annual march for our life22.

Planned Parenthood is the biggest reproductive health care provider in the U.S. In 2014 their annual report showed that the had performed around 324,000 abortions. Planned

Parenthood’s statistics from 2018 to 2019 showed that they preformed 345,672 abortion procedures23.

Conclusion:

The landmark case of Roe V. Wade is very important in U.S history. It broke legal barriers, gender barriers, and safety barriers. Roe V. Wade made something that had been illegal for a long time legal. The people behind the case of Roe V. Wade worked hard for what they thought was right, even though abortion has always been a super controversial topic they still fought for what they thought was right. Roe V. Wade gave women more options for whatever type situation they are in. Roe V. Wade allows women to make their own medical decisions which gives them more rights.

The women behind Roe V. Wade felt that the laws were wrong and women did not have the rights that they deserved, so they went and they fought for what they believed in. These women will be forever remembered as the women that legalized abortion. They didn't only do it so they could have the choice if they needed it, they did it for every woman so they could have the right. Roe V. Wade made abortion advance and safer for women.

22 About the March for Life. marchforlife.org/about-the-march-for-life/. Accessed 15 Feb. 2020 23 Planned Parenthood. "Planned Parenthood Annual Report." Planned Parenthood, www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/facts-figures/annual-report.Planned Parenthood.

Appendix A:

This photo shows a pro-choice protest from 1977. Keegan, Petter. "1977: Women taking part in a demonstration in New York demanding safe legal abortions for all women." Getty Images www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo women-taking-part-in-a-demonstration-in-new-york-demanding-news-photo/ 3293539?adppopup=true. Accessed 2 Feb. 2020.

Appendix B:

This image shows both people who are pro-life and pro-choice gathered outside of the capitol building in Washington D.C from the 2018 the march for our life. Wrong, Alex. "Annual March For Life Rally Winds Through Washington DC." Getty Images, www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/ pro-life-activists-try-to-block-the-sign-of-a-pro-choice-news-photo/ 907233944?adppopup=true. Accessed 2 Feb. 2020.

Annotated Bibliography

About the March for Life. marchforlife.org/about-the-march-for-life/. Accessed 15 Feb. 2020.

From this source, I learned about the march for life protest, which is held every year at

the Capitol building in Washington D.C.

Bauer, Patricia. "Norma McCorvey American activist." Encyclopaedia Britannica,

www.britannica.com/biography/Norma-McCorvey. Accessed 23 Jan. 2020. From this

source, I learned about Norma's life before Roe V. Wade. Her mother was an alcoholic

and growing up Norma got in trouble a lot.

Catholic News Service, editor. "Norma McCorvey, Plaintiff in Roe Ruling Who Later Became

Pro-Life, Dies." CatholicPhilly.com, Catholic Philly, 21 Feb. 2017,

catholicphilly.com/2017/02/news/obituaries/norma-mccorvey-plaintiff-in-roe-ruling-

who-later-became-pro-life-dies/. Accessed 22 Jan. 2020. From this source I learned about

Norma's marriage. Her husband Woody MCcorvey had allegedly assaulted Norma while

she was pregnant with her first child.

Guttmatcher. "An Overview of Abortion Laws." Guttmatcher, 1 Feb. 2020,

www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/overview-abortion-laws. Accessed 16 Feb.

2020. From this source, I learned about what the abortion laws are like today.

History.com Editors, editor. "Roe V. Wade." History.com, 19 May 2019,

www.history.com/topics/womens-rights/roe-v-wade. Accessed 28 Jan. 2020. From this

site I learned about abortion laws before Roe V. Wade.

Keegan, Petter. "1977: Women taking part in a demonstration in New York demanding safe legal

abortions for all women." Getty Images, www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-

photo/women-taking-part-in-a-demonstration-in-new-york-demanding-news-

photo/3293539?adppopup=true. Accessed 2 Feb. 2020. From this source, I looked at a

picture from a pro-choice protest from 1977.

Keneally, Meghan. "Who Was 'Jane Roe,' the Woman at the Heart of the Landmark Abortion

Case?" ABC News, 22 Jan. 2018, abcnews.go.com/US/jane-roe-woman-heart-landmark-

abortion-case/story?id=52462946. Accessed 21 Jan. 2020. From this source I learned

about Norma's history with her children. Norma has 3 children. She put 2 up for adoption

and 1 was raised by her mother.

Napikoski, Linda. "The 1969 Redstockings Abortion Speakout." ThoughtCo., 19 Feb. 2019,

www.thoughtco.com/abortion-speak-out-3528238. Accessed 10 Jan. 2020. From this I

learned about the 1969 Redstockings abortion speak out. It was put on by a "radical"

feminist group called the Redstockings. The were angry that that the hearings about

abortion featured only men speakers.

NCC Staff, editor. "On This Day, the Roe V. Wade Decision." National Constitution Center, 22

Jan. 2018, constitutioncenter.org/blog/landmark-cases-roe-v-wade. Accessed 21 Jan.

2020. From this source I learned that in 1969 the child Norma had conceived was her 3rd

child. Her friends told her to lie about getting raped but there was no police report so she

was unable to.

Planned Parenthood. "Planned Parenthood Annual Report." Planned Parenthood,

www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/facts-figures/annual-report. On this source, I

looked at the annual reports of Planned Parenthood.

---. "Roe V. Wade: The Constitutional Right to Access Safe, Legal Abortion." Planned

Parenthood, www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/roe-v-wade. From this

source, I learned about the safety of abortion procedures today.

Prager, Joshua. "Roe V. Wade's Secret Heroine Tells Her Story." Vanityfair, 19 Jan. 2017,

www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/01/roe-v-wades-secret-heroine-tells-her-story. Accessed

16 Feb. 2020. From this source, I looked at an article from a interview with Linda Coffee.

Reaves, Jessica. "Interview: Sarah Weddington." Time, 16 Jan. 2003,

content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,409103,00.html. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.

From this source, I looked at a transcript from an interview with Sarah Weddington about

Roe V. Wade.

"Roe V. Wade, Explained." YouTube, uploaded by Newsy, 13 July 2018,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HZj8Qp4p2A. Accessed 17 Jan. 2020. This source told me

about what restrictions the court put on Roe V. Wade.

Rosenwald, Michael S. "Roe V. Wade's Forgotten Loser: The Remarkable Story of Dallas

Prosecutor Henry Wade." The Washington Post, 5 Sept. 2018,

www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2018/08/21/roe-v-wades-forgotten-loser-

the-story-of-dallas-prosecutor-henry-wade/. Accessed 19 Dec. 2019. In this Washington

Post article I learned a little about Henry Wade. Wade was 1 of 11 kids and was raised in

Texas. He was an phenomenal lawyer and was elected in 1950 for Dallas county

prosecutor and was for about 4 decades. Wade prosecuted Jack Ruby the man who shot

Lee Harvey Oswald the man who assassinated President J.F.K.

United States, U.S. Supreme Court (U.S.). Roe v. Wade. United States Reports, vols. 70-18. U.S

Supreme Court, www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/1971/70-18_12-13-1971.pdf.

From this source, I looked at the transcript of the court case of Roe V. Wade.

The Washington Spectator in Politics. "Who Was Wade in Roe V. Wade?" Washinton Spectator,

20 Jan. 2016, washingtonspectator.org/who-was-henry-wade/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.

From this source, I learned more about Henry Wade and why he was in the case of Roe

V. Wade.

Weddington, Sarah Ragle. A Question of Choice. New York, Penguin Books, 1993. From this

book I learned about Sarah Weddington's story. Sarah was the lawyer that won Roe V.

Wade. In the year 1967 she was in law school and she was pregnant. Sarah was working

3 jobs and couldn't support a family at the time and she was not married, so Sarah went to

New Mexico and got an illegal abortion.

"When Abortion Became Legal/ Roe V. Wade." YouTube, uploaded by Mr.Beat, 19 Feb. 2017,

www.bing.com/videos/search?q=when+abortion+became+legal&docid=6080549133471

61244&mid=C2BCD0AEF5AFEF4DCD5FC2BCD0AEF5AFEF4DCD5F&view=detail

&FORM=VIRE. Accessed 9 Jan. 2020. From this video I took away a lot of really good

information. I learned a lot about the court case of Roe V. Wade and Norma MCcorvey.

Norma MCcorvey took on the name Jane Roe to protect her identity. Norma was young

and single so when she had conceived a child she wanted to get a illegal abortion.

Williams, Daniel K. "What You Don't Know About the Abortion Fight Before Roe v. Wade."

Time, 4 Jan. 2016, time.com/4154084/anti-abortion-pre-roe/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020. From

this source, I learned about a pro-life protest in 1972.

Wrong, Alex. "Annual March For Life Rally Winds Through Washington DC." Getty Images,

www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/pro-life-activists-try-to-block-the-sign-of-a-

pro-choice-news-photo/907233944?adppopup=true. Accessed 2 Feb. 2020. This source

was a photo from an abortion rally with both pro-life and pro-choice. The protesters were

outside of the capitol building during this.