January 22nd, 2018, marked the 45th Anniversary of the monumental Roe v Wade decision. This anniversary was also marked by the pro-life March for Life and the pro-choice Women’s Marches that happened across the country on January 19th and 20th, 2018. The issue of abortion and reproductive rights have been especially divisive within the women’s movement.
Roe v Wade was a 1973 Supreme Court case which ruled that the right to privacy, under the 14th Amendment, also applied to a woman’s right to make the choice to get an abortion. This case saw 21-year-old Norma L. McCorvey, pregnant with her third child, anonymously sue the state of Texas for her right to have an abortion. In 1970, a district court ruled that Texas was, in fact, violating McCorvey’s right to privacy under the 9th Amendment. However, no formal statement ordered law enforcement to follow this ruling. Therefore, this case was filed for appeal until it reached the Supreme Court. Roe v Wade was heard in the Supreme Court in late 1971. The judges ruled that the Texas laws should be stricken down after the first round of arguments. In 1973, the court released its opinion, stating that abortion was a fundamental right under the Constitution and Texas’s laws were in violation of the 14th Amendment.
At the time in which Roe v Wade was decided, there were pro-choice and pro-life people who identified as both Democrats and Republicans. Today, however, the right to abortion has become an increasingly partisan issue. Now, most Republicans are pro-life, while most Democrats are pro-choice. This partisanship is highlighted in the March for Life, as President Trump actually addressed the March live in support of the movement. He was the first president ever to give a live address, as George W Bush and Ronald Reagan voiced their support through recorded messages. The White House went so far as to announce that January 22nd, the Roe anniversary, was to be the National Sanctity of Human Life Day.
While both Trump and Pence are commonly recognized as pro-life, Trump’s administration has seen an increase in violence and harassment targeting abortion clinics. This is unusual, as this violence usually spikes under more pro-choice administrations and fade out under pro-life, usually Republican, presidents. In fact, many pro-life advocates criticized Trump’s statements during the 2016 Election that women who have abortions should be punished.
Roe v Wade has been contested many times since the original ruling. Norma McCorvey, the original plaintiff, filed a motion in 2003 with the US District Court in Texas, asking that Roe v Wade be overturned. The ACLU has gone to court several times since last October, as the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is in charge of unaccompanied immigrant minors, has adopted a no abortion policy. In 2017, 19 states adopted 63 new restrictions on abortion rights and access, including mandatory counseling, waiting periods and ultrasounds.
The abortion issue is a hot-button issue in today’s chaotic and erratic political climate. While we mark the 45th Anniversary of this monumental ruling following the various marches, its future continues to be unsure following the pick of a very conservative, pro-life judge by the Trump administration.