- What is the history of abortion? (timeline)
- What are the risks of abortions? (alley vs medical)
- How have abortion rates been reduced?
- Who are getting abortions?
- What are all the different ways to get an abortion?
MY RESEARCH
Question 1: What is the history of abortion?
1821 -- America's first statutory abortion regulation is enacted in Connecticut in order to protect women from abortion inducement through poison administered after the fourth month of pregnancy.
1821: Connecticut passes the first law in the United States barring abortions after “quickening.”
1856 -- Leading pro-life advocate Dr. Horatio Storer establishes a national drive by the American Medical Association (AMA) to end legal abortion. First trimester abortion at this point (in most states) is legal or a misdemeanor.
1873 -- The Comstock Act bans access to information about abortion and birth control.
1860: Twenty states have laws limiting abortion
1890 -- Abortion is regulated by statutes advocated by the AMA, and abortion is permitted upon conferral of one or more physicians who believe the procedure is necessary to preserve the life of the mother.
1961 -- Vacuum aspiration-style abortion spreads throughout Europe and is considered safer than traditional methods
1963 -- The Society for Human Abortion is established in San Francisco. SHA challenges the law by openly providing information on abortion and contraception.
1965: Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court decision strikes down a state law that prohibited giving married people information, instruction, or medical advice on contraception.
1967 -- Abortion is classified a felony in 49 states and Washington D.C. Dr. Leon Belous is convicted for referring a woman to an illegal abortionist -- a case leading to a 1969 California Supreme Court decision in favor of the right to choose abortion.
President Kennedy creates the Presidential Advisory Council on the Status of Women and calls for the repeal of abortion laws.
1967: Colorado is the first state to liberalize its abortion laws.
1970 -- Abortion activist Dr. Jane Hodgson is convicted in Minnesota for performing an abortion on a 23 year-old woman. The judge does not submit the case to the state supreme court.
Hawaii becomes the first state to allow abortions performed before 20 weeks of pregnancy, thereby repealing its criminal abortion law. Soon after, New York State repeals its criminal abortion law.
1970: Alaska, Hawaii, New York, and Washington liberalize abortion laws, making abortion available at the request of a woman and her doctor
1971 -- The Comstock Act prohibiting information on abortion is repealed. (State laws banning contraception remain.) Abortion under "certain" conditions is allowed in 14 states; four states guarantee a woman the choice of pregnancy termination.
Norma McCorvey, an unmarried pregnant woman in Texas, challenges a state law that makes it a crime for a doctor to perform an abortion unless a woman's life is at stake. To protect her privacy, McCorvey is listed as "Jane Roe" in all court documents.
The Supreme Court, in Roe vs. Wade, grants women the right to terminate pregnancies through abortion. The ruling is based on a woman's right to privacy.
In a separate case, Doe vs. Bolton, the Supreme Court votes 7-2 to invalidate Georgia law that required a woman to get approval from three physicians before having an abortion.
1972: Eisenstadt v. Baird Supreme Court decision establishes the right of unmarried people to use contraceptives.
1973: Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision strikes down state laws that made abortion illegal.
1974 -- Federally funded research using fetal tissue is prohibited through the National Science Foundation Authorization Act.
1976 -- Congress passes the Hyde Amendment, banning the use of Medicaid and other federal funds for jabortions. The legislation is upheld by the Supreme Court in 1980.
1976: Congress adopts the first Hyde Amendment barring the use of federal Medicaid funds to provide abortions to low-income women.
1977: A revised Hyde Amendment is passed allowing states to deny Medicaid funding except in cases of rape, incest, or “severe and long-lasting” damage to the woman’s physical health.
1979 -- A Missouri requirement that abortions after the first trimester be performed in hospitals is found unconstitutional. Another law mandating parental consent is upheld.
1981 -- In Bellotti vs. Baird, Supreme Court rules that pregnant minors can petition court for permission to have an abortion without parental notification
1983 -- The court strikes down an Akron ordinance that requires doctors to give abortion patients antiabortion literature, imposes a 24-hour waiting period, requires abortions after the first trimester to be performed in a hospital, requires parental consent and requires the aborted fetus to be disposed of in a ‘human’ manner.
1989 -- In Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services, a law in Washington State declaring that "life begins at conception"; and barring the use of public facilities for abortions is found unconstitutional. It marks the first time the Supreme Court does not explicitly reaffirm Roe vs. Wade.
1991: Rust v. Sullivan upholds the constitutionality of the 1988 “gag rule” which prohibits doctors and counselors at clinics which receive federal funding from providing their patients with information about and referrals for abortion.
1992 -- In Planned Parenthood vs. Casey, the court reaffirms Roe’s core holding that states may not ban abortions or interfere with a woman’s decision to have an abortion. The court does uphold mandatory 24-hour waiting periods and parental-consent laws.
1992: Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey reaffirms the “core” holdings of Roe that women have a right to abortion before fetal viability, but allows states to restrict abortion access so long as these restrictions do not impose an “undue burden” on women seeking abortions.
1993 -- Abortion protestor Michael Griffin shoots Dr. David Gunn outside a clinic in Pensacola, Fla., during a March demonstration; he is later sentenced to life in prison. In August, Dr. George Tiller is shot in the arm while leaving clinic in Wichita, Kan.; Rachelle ‘Shelley’ Shannon is convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
1994 -- In July, Dr. John Bayard Britton and bodyguard are slain outside clinic in Pensacola, Fla., by former minister Paul J. Hill; Hill is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. In December, John Salvi walks into two Boston-area abortion clinics with a rifle and opens fire, killing two receptionists and wounding five others; he is sentenced to life in prison without parole, but he kills himself in prison in 1996.
1995 -- Norma McCorvey ("Jane Roe", who didn’t have an abortion because the court ruling came too late, is befriended by the national director of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, who baptizes her upon her conversion to Christianity. McCorvey declares that she is pro-life and regrets her role in the landmark case.
1994: Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act is passed by Congress with a large majority in response to the murder of Dr. David Gunn. The FACE Act forbids the use of “force, threat of force or physical obstruction” to prevent someone from providing or receiving reproductive health services. The law also provides for both criminal and civil penalties for those who break the law.
1996 -- The abortion debate shifts to state bans on "partial-birth abortions" which generally include late-term abortions performed with the "dilation and evacuation" method. 104th Congress passes HR 1833, a bill to outlaw such procedures; President Clinton vetoes the bill.
1997 -- Two bombs blast outside an Atlanta building containing an abortion clinic; six people injured; the clinic is left in ruins and the blast blows out windows across the street.
2000: Stenberg v. Carhart (Carhart I) rules that the Nebraska statute banning so-called “partial-birth abortion” is unconstitutional for two independent reasons: the statute lacks the necessary exception for preserving the health of the woman, and the definition of the targeted procedures is so broad as to prohibit abortions in the second trimester, thereby being an “undue burden” on women. This effectively invalidates 29 of 31 similar statewide bans.
2000: Food and Drug Administration approves mifepristone (RU-486) as an option in abortion care for very early pregnancy.
2003: A federal ban on abortion procedures is passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush. The National Abortion Federation immediately challenges the law in court and is successful in blocking enforcement of the law for its members.
2004: NAF wins lawsuit against federal abortion ban. Justice Department appeals rulings by three trial courts against ban.
1821: Connecticut passes the first law in the United States barring abortions after “quickening.”
1856 -- Leading pro-life advocate Dr. Horatio Storer establishes a national drive by the American Medical Association (AMA) to end legal abortion. First trimester abortion at this point (in most states) is legal or a misdemeanor.
1873 -- The Comstock Act bans access to information about abortion and birth control.
1860: Twenty states have laws limiting abortion
1890 -- Abortion is regulated by statutes advocated by the AMA, and abortion is permitted upon conferral of one or more physicians who believe the procedure is necessary to preserve the life of the mother.
1961 -- Vacuum aspiration-style abortion spreads throughout Europe and is considered safer than traditional methods
1963 -- The Society for Human Abortion is established in San Francisco. SHA challenges the law by openly providing information on abortion and contraception.
1965: Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court decision strikes down a state law that prohibited giving married people information, instruction, or medical advice on contraception.
1967 -- Abortion is classified a felony in 49 states and Washington D.C. Dr. Leon Belous is convicted for referring a woman to an illegal abortionist -- a case leading to a 1969 California Supreme Court decision in favor of the right to choose abortion.
President Kennedy creates the Presidential Advisory Council on the Status of Women and calls for the repeal of abortion laws.
1967: Colorado is the first state to liberalize its abortion laws.
1970 -- Abortion activist Dr. Jane Hodgson is convicted in Minnesota for performing an abortion on a 23 year-old woman. The judge does not submit the case to the state supreme court.
Hawaii becomes the first state to allow abortions performed before 20 weeks of pregnancy, thereby repealing its criminal abortion law. Soon after, New York State repeals its criminal abortion law.
1970: Alaska, Hawaii, New York, and Washington liberalize abortion laws, making abortion available at the request of a woman and her doctor
1971 -- The Comstock Act prohibiting information on abortion is repealed. (State laws banning contraception remain.) Abortion under "certain" conditions is allowed in 14 states; four states guarantee a woman the choice of pregnancy termination.
Norma McCorvey, an unmarried pregnant woman in Texas, challenges a state law that makes it a crime for a doctor to perform an abortion unless a woman's life is at stake. To protect her privacy, McCorvey is listed as "Jane Roe" in all court documents.
The Supreme Court, in Roe vs. Wade, grants women the right to terminate pregnancies through abortion. The ruling is based on a woman's right to privacy.
In a separate case, Doe vs. Bolton, the Supreme Court votes 7-2 to invalidate Georgia law that required a woman to get approval from three physicians before having an abortion.
1972: Eisenstadt v. Baird Supreme Court decision establishes the right of unmarried people to use contraceptives.
1973: Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision strikes down state laws that made abortion illegal.
1974 -- Federally funded research using fetal tissue is prohibited through the National Science Foundation Authorization Act.
1976 -- Congress passes the Hyde Amendment, banning the use of Medicaid and other federal funds for jabortions. The legislation is upheld by the Supreme Court in 1980.
1976: Congress adopts the first Hyde Amendment barring the use of federal Medicaid funds to provide abortions to low-income women.
1977: A revised Hyde Amendment is passed allowing states to deny Medicaid funding except in cases of rape, incest, or “severe and long-lasting” damage to the woman’s physical health.
1979 -- A Missouri requirement that abortions after the first trimester be performed in hospitals is found unconstitutional. Another law mandating parental consent is upheld.
1981 -- In Bellotti vs. Baird, Supreme Court rules that pregnant minors can petition court for permission to have an abortion without parental notification
1983 -- The court strikes down an Akron ordinance that requires doctors to give abortion patients antiabortion literature, imposes a 24-hour waiting period, requires abortions after the first trimester to be performed in a hospital, requires parental consent and requires the aborted fetus to be disposed of in a ‘human’ manner.
1989 -- In Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services, a law in Washington State declaring that "life begins at conception"; and barring the use of public facilities for abortions is found unconstitutional. It marks the first time the Supreme Court does not explicitly reaffirm Roe vs. Wade.
1991: Rust v. Sullivan upholds the constitutionality of the 1988 “gag rule” which prohibits doctors and counselors at clinics which receive federal funding from providing their patients with information about and referrals for abortion.
1992 -- In Planned Parenthood vs. Casey, the court reaffirms Roe’s core holding that states may not ban abortions or interfere with a woman’s decision to have an abortion. The court does uphold mandatory 24-hour waiting periods and parental-consent laws.
1992: Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey reaffirms the “core” holdings of Roe that women have a right to abortion before fetal viability, but allows states to restrict abortion access so long as these restrictions do not impose an “undue burden” on women seeking abortions.
1993 -- Abortion protestor Michael Griffin shoots Dr. David Gunn outside a clinic in Pensacola, Fla., during a March demonstration; he is later sentenced to life in prison. In August, Dr. George Tiller is shot in the arm while leaving clinic in Wichita, Kan.; Rachelle ‘Shelley’ Shannon is convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
1994 -- In July, Dr. John Bayard Britton and bodyguard are slain outside clinic in Pensacola, Fla., by former minister Paul J. Hill; Hill is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. In December, John Salvi walks into two Boston-area abortion clinics with a rifle and opens fire, killing two receptionists and wounding five others; he is sentenced to life in prison without parole, but he kills himself in prison in 1996.
1995 -- Norma McCorvey ("Jane Roe", who didn’t have an abortion because the court ruling came too late, is befriended by the national director of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, who baptizes her upon her conversion to Christianity. McCorvey declares that she is pro-life and regrets her role in the landmark case.
1994: Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act is passed by Congress with a large majority in response to the murder of Dr. David Gunn. The FACE Act forbids the use of “force, threat of force or physical obstruction” to prevent someone from providing or receiving reproductive health services. The law also provides for both criminal and civil penalties for those who break the law.
1996 -- The abortion debate shifts to state bans on "partial-birth abortions" which generally include late-term abortions performed with the "dilation and evacuation" method. 104th Congress passes HR 1833, a bill to outlaw such procedures; President Clinton vetoes the bill.
1997 -- Two bombs blast outside an Atlanta building containing an abortion clinic; six people injured; the clinic is left in ruins and the blast blows out windows across the street.
2000: Stenberg v. Carhart (Carhart I) rules that the Nebraska statute banning so-called “partial-birth abortion” is unconstitutional for two independent reasons: the statute lacks the necessary exception for preserving the health of the woman, and the definition of the targeted procedures is so broad as to prohibit abortions in the second trimester, thereby being an “undue burden” on women. This effectively invalidates 29 of 31 similar statewide bans.
2000: Food and Drug Administration approves mifepristone (RU-486) as an option in abortion care for very early pregnancy.
2003: A federal ban on abortion procedures is passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush. The National Abortion Federation immediately challenges the law in court and is successful in blocking enforcement of the law for its members.
2004: NAF wins lawsuit against federal abortion ban. Justice Department appeals rulings by three trial courts against ban.
Question 2: What are the risks of abortion?
ALLEY ABORTIONS
|
CLINIC ABORTIONS
|
Question 3: How have abortion rates been reduced?
The US has seen a decrease in abortion rates from 2011 to 2017 that could be correlated to the decrease in births and pregnancy over all. Shutting down clinics in certain areas has made an affect of decreasing the amount of SAFE abortions (lack of access). Though these restrictions are a direct violation of individuals’ dignity, bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom. An increase in accessible contraception and comprehensive sex education could also be a large part of the change.
Question 4: Who are getting abortions?
Women at the ages of 20-29 have the majority of abortions (61%), adolescents (ages 10-19) are having 23% of abortions. The most common race having abortions is white (39%). 75% of women having abortions are in poverty.
Question 5: What are all the different ways to get an abortion?
SAFE ABORTIONS
Milpristone (nonsurgical abortion) 39% of abortions Vaccum or suction Dialation and evacuation |
UNSAFE ABORTIONS
-drinking toxic fluids such as turpentine, bleach, or drinkable concoctions mixed with livestock manure -inflicting direct injury to the vagina or elsewhere (inserting herbal preparations into the vagina or cervix; placing a foreign body such as a twig, coat hanger, or chicken bone into the uterus; or placing inappropriate medication into the vagina or rectum.) -unhygienic settings -external injury (jumping from the top of stairs or a roof, or inflicting blunt trauma to the abdomen) |