There is no mention of abortion in the Constitution so it can’t be protected. However, in a recent essay, Andrew Koppelman challenges this assertion on originalist grounds: forced reproduction was intrinsic to slavery, which the framers of the Thirteenth Amendment sought to prohibit.
As Roe v. Wade and I turn 40, we get closer to middle age. A little wiser and more battle-worn than we were at 16. We know more than we did then about how and why abortion must remain safe and legal.
When only one side feels comfortable discussing abortion, the issue will inevitably seem settled.
Roe also acknowledges a related fact: until its passage women’s bodies, legally speaking, functioned like production facilities, holding tanks, regulated environments, the property of the men who impregnated them.
However a person feels about abortion, it’s not their place to make that personal decision for someone else. And it’s certainly not the place of our elected officials.
On this 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, we honor and celebrate US women’s legal right to abortion, and we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that abortion is accessible to women everywhere, and that the promise of the decision is a reality for all of us.
To coincide with the 40th anniversary of Roe V. Wade, Advocates for Youth has published a book compiled from 40 stories submitted to the 1 in 3 Campaign. This article is the introduction to 1 in 3: These Are Our Stories.
Time Magazine recently said, abortion-rights activists won a victory 40 years ago with the Roe v. Wade decision, and have been losing ever since. What they didn’t say is that 2012 is the year we TOOK A STAND, organized via social media, and used it to STOP this madness!
Our new study makes clear that post-Roe anti-abortion and “pro-life” measures are being used to do far more than limit access to abortion; they are providing the basis for arresting women, locking them up, and forcing them to submit to medical interventions, including surgery.
The Drug War and the War on Reproductive Health aren’t just rhetorical. One woman’s tragic death shows us the true human cost of devaluing pregnant women.
