The History Of Abortion In The Us

The History of Abortion in United States

Abortion is a spontaneous expulsion of a human fetus during the first twelve weeks of gestation (Collegiate). Abortion has always been a controversial issue. The purpose of this paper is not to persuade anyone neither, pro or con, on abortion but to simply present the history of abortion in the United States.

History of Abortion

Abortion has been practiced since the time of early colonies settling in America (History of Abortion). Abortion was once legal before the Constitution made it a law. During the time, abortion was freely advertised and routinely performed (NAF). The people residing during this time period were strongly opposed to abortion pending well into the nineteenth century. They strongly believed that if you pursued an abortion after quickening (feeling life) that it was a strong transgression. Many considered that the child in the womb has legal rights even if the mother might perish. Countless religions have special beliefs on abortion. Commonly in Greece and Rome, Assyrians punished those who participated in abortion. Whereas, the Jewish community held the belief that the fetus in a woman is not a person. In 1312, the Catholic Church Council of Vienne stated that having an abortion after the fetus was formed, which the church felt happened during the first trimester, was homicide. This view changed in the seventeenth century when it was felt that sperm cells examined under a microscope showed a fully formed human being (History of Abortion).

By the early 1800's, it was felt that fertilization was the beginning of the human life rather than when the mother experiences quickening. In 1869, the British Parliament passed "Offense Against the Persons Act" withdrawing the felony punishment back to fertilization. This is the milestone that began the law against abortion in countless states. By 1860, eighty-five percent of the population that resided in the states had a new law prohibiting abortion. When abortionists were convicted they were sent to jail for months at a time. The mothers were never drawn into imploring the abortions. Conviction was not common at the time because they did not have the proper tools and technology to diagnose early pregnancy. As a result, there was no evidence for the abortionist to be convicted medically or lawfully. At this time, the most knowledgeable way to know that the mother was pregnant was to hear the fetus's heartbeat. At that time, the heartbeat could not be defected until the second trimester. Before the second trimester, the abortionist could claim the mother had a medical problem causing her mene7strual period to be late; he merely brought on her period. Abortionists were rarely prosecuted unless the patient was injured or died. The major reason abortionists were not prosecuted for murder was because you cannot convict a person of murder unless a body can be produced. Since the fetal tissue could not be examined it was impossible to prove the abortionist's actions had ended the pregnancy or that she had even been pregnant (History of Abortion).

States began passing laws making abortion illegal in the mid-to-late 1800's. Motivation for these laws came not so much from religious beliefs but

was due more to concern over America's birthrate moving from one of the highest in the world to the lowest. This drop in birth rates played a part in America's dramatic change in economic and social conversion in to an "urban-industrial society" (History of Abortion). Another motivator in making abortion illegal also concerned birthrates, specifically among newly arriving immigrants (NAF). Throughout history, some women chose to end unwanted pregnancy by abortion. Many women turned to "back-alley" abortion when abortion was illegal or they did not have the funds for a legal abortion. "Back-Alley" abortion consisted of measures such as women being blindfolded by strangers and taken by car to an abortionist in isolated areas. Sadly, some abortionists were drunk and even did the procedure in the backseats of cars (When Abortion Was Illegal). The prohibition from the 1880's to 1973 came under the same anti-obscenity laws prohibiting the distribution of birth control services and even information on birth control. Even though abortion was a crime it didn't stop women from having the procedure done thousands of women were seriously harmed. Women often received illegal abortion from practitioners that were inexperienced and did the procedure with primitive measures or dirty tools; some women even attempted the abortion themselves. Hospitals treated women that were nearly killed or were suffering from the results of the abortions done in unsafe environments (NAF). Women were scared after these abortions and failed to see a doctor when complications arrived (When Abortion Was Illegal).

During the Great Depression's economic decline, the need for women to control childbearing and prevent pregnancy rose sharply. This need lead to the 1920's campaign to make birth control available and by 1937, eighty percent of American Women approved of using birth control. The labor and socialist movements of this time also lead to an environment, which greatly supported women's reproductive rights. The 1917 Russian Revolution also influenced this issue, because since that time Russian physicians had been performing safe and legal abortions, thus influencing the United State doctors to follow suit. As a result, clinics operating in open defiance of the law. Due to factors such as these and the advent of sulfa drugs and penicillin lead to maternal mortality decreasing in the 1930's. Fourteen percent of maternal mortality was related to illegal abortion (When Abortion Was Illegal).

By the 1950's, abortion rates started declining. This decline was due, in part, by physicians' practices being examined more closely by their peers and hospital administrators. These administrators were concerned about the legality of practices performed in their hospitals (NAF). In the early 1960's things changed for the worse. In New York and the United States, more women died from illegal abortions after World War Two than before. During this time period, there was much criticism towards women's rights, women working outside the home, and women living more independent. From this criticism grew a crackdown on illegal abortion and once again abortion moved more underground (When Abortion Was Illegal).

Clinics and offices were raided and searched. Patients and staff were attacked. Police detectives confronted women outside of abortion clinics and obliged them to testify against the abortionist. Those that didn't testify often found their private details