Sarah Weddington
"The long-term impact of Roe v. Wade has been that for 43 years Americans have known the experience of living under rules that left it to individual women to make decisions about whether to continue or terminate pregnancies."
-Sarah Weddington, Lawyer for Jane Roe
1. What was abortion like in the US before Roe v. Wade?
"Before Roe v. Wade, abortion was generally illegal throughout the U.S. However, New York state had changed its law through legislative action a few years earlier so abortion was legal in New York and women from across
the U.S. were attempting to get to New York for procedures. Abortion was legal on a limited basis in Colorado, and a few other places like California. There were a few stories in the press about U.S. women who had flown to other countries to seek an abortion. But women without money generally ended up in illegal places or attempted self-abortions. The results were often near disastrous. A public hospital in Dallas (Parkland Hospital) had a ward called the IOB ward, the infected obstetrics ward, where women who had had illegal abortions or who had attempted self-abortions were treated. Doctors in such places working to save women’s lives and their fertility became activated to emphasize that the law should be changed. In Austin, Texas, a group of students at The University of Texas - Austin, began to work to at least tell women the best places to go for abortion and to counsel them about places to avoid. That group of students later came to me when I was a recent law graduate asking if it would be possible to file a law suit with the goal of making abortion legal. I told them that I didn’t know, but that I would go to the law library and try to find the answer to their question. That trip to the law library developed into the case of Roe v. Wade."
2. What was happening in the US during the time of Roe v. Wade to make it a good time to bring it to the Supreme Court?
"The number of press stories about the problems resulting from the fact that abortion was generally illegal in the U.S. yet women were insisting on having illegal abortions when that was the only alternative they could afford
to end an unwanted pregnancy led to various groups and important individuals speaking out with the goal of changing the various state laws and the law throughout the U.S.. The number of women dying, being made sterile, or having grave medical problems as a result of the fact that abortions were illegal and that women were seeking illegal abortions created pressure to change the laws."
3. What was the public’s reaction to the decision immediately after the ruling of Roe v. Wade?
"The initial reaction immediately after the ruling was twofold. A large group of people were delighted about the change and spoke out fervently in favor of that change. The other group, especially led by authorities within the Catholic Church, were absolutely opposed to the ruling and its consequence that abortions became available."
4. What was the long term impact of Roe v. Wade?
"The long term impact of Roe v. Wade has been that for 43 years Americans have known the experience of living under rules that left it to individual women to make decisions about whether to continue or terminate pregnancies. In recent years a variety of states have begun to pass more and more laws that don’t make abortion illegal but that do make it much more difficult for women to access abortions. This coming Wednesday, March 2, the U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing a case that challenges laws passed in Texas in 2013 that make abortion access a problem for many women; a number of abortion clinics have closed in Texas and other states. The Justices will meet together on Friday, March 4 to discuss the case and perhaps decide what the Court's ruling will be. However, it is likely to be several months before the Court announces its decision while the process of writing its decision proceeds."
5. What is your reaction to the current Texas abortion case before the Supreme Court?
"I am concerned about what the outcome of the case being heard by the Supreme Court will be. If a majority of the Justices vote to uphold the Texas laws at issue, not only will that impact Texas but such a result is
likely to also encourage other states to pass the same laws which will then be held constitutional by a variety of courts. The outcome of all that will be to make access to abortion much more difficult than it has been since the decision in Roe v. Wade was announced by the U.S. Supreme Court in l973. I learned today that the attorney arguing on behalf of the State of Texas and its laws was previously the Clerk for Justice Kennedy for several prior years; Kennedy is considered the swing vote in this case and the one whose vote will determine the outcome. If the result is 4 -4, with 4 Justices voting to rule the Texas anti-abortion statutes constitutional and 4 voting in the opposite manner, then the prior ruling of the 5th Circuit in the case will prevail. That decision was to uphold the Texas anti-abortion statutes. It is extremely hard to predict what the outcome of the case will be. The only thing that is for certain is that the Court’s ruling will be extremely important and that it will have great impact."
"Before Roe v. Wade, abortion was generally illegal throughout the U.S. However, New York state had changed its law through legislative action a few years earlier so abortion was legal in New York and women from across
the U.S. were attempting to get to New York for procedures. Abortion was legal on a limited basis in Colorado, and a few other places like California. There were a few stories in the press about U.S. women who had flown to other countries to seek an abortion. But women without money generally ended up in illegal places or attempted self-abortions. The results were often near disastrous. A public hospital in Dallas (Parkland Hospital) had a ward called the IOB ward, the infected obstetrics ward, where women who had had illegal abortions or who had attempted self-abortions were treated. Doctors in such places working to save women’s lives and their fertility became activated to emphasize that the law should be changed. In Austin, Texas, a group of students at The University of Texas - Austin, began to work to at least tell women the best places to go for abortion and to counsel them about places to avoid. That group of students later came to me when I was a recent law graduate asking if it would be possible to file a law suit with the goal of making abortion legal. I told them that I didn’t know, but that I would go to the law library and try to find the answer to their question. That trip to the law library developed into the case of Roe v. Wade."
2. What was happening in the US during the time of Roe v. Wade to make it a good time to bring it to the Supreme Court?
"The number of press stories about the problems resulting from the fact that abortion was generally illegal in the U.S. yet women were insisting on having illegal abortions when that was the only alternative they could afford
to end an unwanted pregnancy led to various groups and important individuals speaking out with the goal of changing the various state laws and the law throughout the U.S.. The number of women dying, being made sterile, or having grave medical problems as a result of the fact that abortions were illegal and that women were seeking illegal abortions created pressure to change the laws."
3. What was the public’s reaction to the decision immediately after the ruling of Roe v. Wade?
"The initial reaction immediately after the ruling was twofold. A large group of people were delighted about the change and spoke out fervently in favor of that change. The other group, especially led by authorities within the Catholic Church, were absolutely opposed to the ruling and its consequence that abortions became available."
4. What was the long term impact of Roe v. Wade?
"The long term impact of Roe v. Wade has been that for 43 years Americans have known the experience of living under rules that left it to individual women to make decisions about whether to continue or terminate pregnancies. In recent years a variety of states have begun to pass more and more laws that don’t make abortion illegal but that do make it much more difficult for women to access abortions. This coming Wednesday, March 2, the U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing a case that challenges laws passed in Texas in 2013 that make abortion access a problem for many women; a number of abortion clinics have closed in Texas and other states. The Justices will meet together on Friday, March 4 to discuss the case and perhaps decide what the Court's ruling will be. However, it is likely to be several months before the Court announces its decision while the process of writing its decision proceeds."
5. What is your reaction to the current Texas abortion case before the Supreme Court?
"I am concerned about what the outcome of the case being heard by the Supreme Court will be. If a majority of the Justices vote to uphold the Texas laws at issue, not only will that impact Texas but such a result is
likely to also encourage other states to pass the same laws which will then be held constitutional by a variety of courts. The outcome of all that will be to make access to abortion much more difficult than it has been since the decision in Roe v. Wade was announced by the U.S. Supreme Court in l973. I learned today that the attorney arguing on behalf of the State of Texas and its laws was previously the Clerk for Justice Kennedy for several prior years; Kennedy is considered the swing vote in this case and the one whose vote will determine the outcome. If the result is 4 -4, with 4 Justices voting to rule the Texas anti-abortion statutes constitutional and 4 voting in the opposite manner, then the prior ruling of the 5th Circuit in the case will prevail. That decision was to uphold the Texas anti-abortion statutes. It is extremely hard to predict what the outcome of the case will be. The only thing that is for certain is that the Court’s ruling will be extremely important and that it will have great impact."