Roe v. Wade Decision 15 Shocking and Lesser Known Facts
1. Roe v. Wade was a 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide.
2. The case was brought by a young woman named Norma McCorvey, who used the pseudonym "Jane Roe."
3. McCorvey became a pro-life activist later in life and publicly stated that she regretted her role in the case.
4. The Supreme Court decision was based on the right to privacy, which the Court found was protected by the 14th Amendment.
5. The decision also established a trimester framework for regulating abortion, with more restrictions allowed in later trimesters.
6. The Roe v. Wade decision was not the first time the Supreme Court considered the issue of abortion. In 1971, the Court decided another case, United States v. Vuitch, which upheld a law that allowed abortion in certain circumstances.
7. Roe v. Wade was decided by a 7-2 vote, with Justices Harry Blackmun, William Brennan, Warren Burger, William Douglas, Thurgood Marshall, Lewis Powell, and Potter Stewart in the majority.
8. The two dissenting Justices were Byron White and William Rehnquist, who later became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
9. The Roe v. Wade decision has influenced similar debates about reproductive rights and abortion in other countries around the world.
10. The Roe v. Wade decision remains a landmark in the ongoing struggle for women's rights and reproductive freedom in the United States.