Overturning Roe v Wade (1973): The facts, the situation in Australia, and how you can show support
By Belinda Young, with thanks to Helen Rhoades
The US Supreme Court decision to overturn the 1973 Roe V Wade case ruling has sent a shockwave around the world.
The late US Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG) once said that "reacting in anger or annoyance will not advance one's ability to persuade". With RBG firmly in mind, I calmed myself and set about gathering some facts.
The history of Roe v Wade (1973)
In 1970, Norma McCorvey, using the legal pseudonym of ‘Jane Roe’, initiated proceedings seeking a declaration that the then Texas legislation prohibiting abortion was unconstitutional and invalid. Twenty-three year old McCorvey had tried and failed to obtain an illegal abortion in Texas when she turned to two recent law graduates for legal assistance. These women, like a growing number of others at the time, were frustrated by the continuing failure of state legislatures to legalize abortion despite the evidence of changing community attitudes to the issue. They saw McCorvey’s case as a way to achieve reform through the courts.
The case of Roe v Wade eventually made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court and judgment was delivered on 22 January 1973. The constitutional question raised by the case was whether abortion was a federal issue, to the exclusion of the states. The Supreme Court ruled that it was constitutionally invalid for the States to prohibit abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy, although they could validly regulate abortion after that period. The basis for this ruling rested on an application of the Fourteenth Amendment, which prohibits a State from depriving any person of ‘life, liberty, or property without due process of law’. The Court found that this right protected Jane Roe’s right to ‘privacy’.
Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)
In the Dobbs judgment, handed down last Friday, the current Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Constitution “does not confer a right to abortion”. Reversing the decision in Roe v Wade, a majority of the Court’s judges held that it is a matter for State legislatures to determine how to regulate access to abortion.
Immediately after the decision was delivered, several U.S. States moved to enact laws prohibiting abortion, in some cases with no exceptions for rape, and it is likely that at least 20 States will pass similar legislation. For many women in America, this will mean a return to the situation that Norma McCorvey was confronted with in 1969, a situation in which they may need to incur the expense of travelling interstate or seek out an illegal and unsafe abortion. And it is likely to see an increase in babies offered for adoption, a practice that has been the subject of government apologies in modern times.
Abortion in Australia
Unlike the situation in the United States under Roe v Wade, access to abortion in Australia is not vulnerable to the shifting interpretations of the courts. As of 2021, all states and territories in Australia have enacted legislation decriminalizing abortion. For the most part, abortion is now regulated under health law, as it should be, not criminal law. Surgical abortion is generally accessible up until 20 to 28 weeks from conception (depending on the jurisdiction), and a medical abortion can be provided in the first 9 weeks of pregnancy. All jurisdictions in Australia have also introduced “safe access” or “buffer zone” provisions, which prevent the harassment of pregnant people and their supporters outside places that provide abortions.
Is more needed to safeguard women’s reproductive health choices in Australia?
A continuing barrier for many women needing an abortion in Australia is a financial one. While some women in some jurisdictions can access a termination through a public hospital, the majority of abortions in other states are performed in private clinics and can be costly in the absence of private health cover. There are also few providers in rural and regional areas, adding sometimes significant travel expenses to the overall cost (Utting et al, 2018).
One solution that has been suggested is for the federal government to regulate the issue and create a dedicated Medicare item number for medical abortions, to incentivise more GPs to become providers (Millar, 2022). While Medicare will generally cover a proportion of the cost of a surgical abortion, this is not the case for all termination procedures. Emergency contraception and some long-acting contraception methods are also not currently covered under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
How to Support
If you would like to support women in the US, there are ways. Planned Parenthood is an American non-profit organisation that provides reproductive health care and information both in the US and globally. In the US, they are currently helping women who need assistance to get abortion care in another state. Donating funds to Planned Parenthood is one way to help.
Getting involved in protests is another way. There are many Solidarity Rallies around Women’s Reproductive Health taking place in Australia this week. Below is a short list of some of the larger ones.
Melbourne: Saturday 2 July 12pm – State Library. Details here
Sydney: Saturday 2nd July 1pm Sydney Town hall
Woolongong: Saturday 1 July 12pm Crown St Mall Amphitheatre
Brisbane: Friday 1 July 5:30pm King George Square
Perth: Monday 27 June 1pm US Consulate
Adelaide: Friday 1 July 5:30pm Beehive Cnr Rundle mall
Canberra: Saturday 2 July 12pm Garema Place
To our friends in the US disappointed by Friday’s court ruling, I hope you hear the roar of disapproval around the world, appalled by this ruling. You are not alone in this fight and this most certainly isn’t the end.
Where to get help
1800 My Options or Tel 1800 696 784 is Victoria’s sexual and reproductive health information and phoneline service, complemented by a website. It is a confidential, pro-choice and women-centred service, established to provide information to meet individual sexual and reproductive health needs. 1800 My Options does not provide clinical, medical, legal or financial advice or counselling.
Sexual Health Victoria (SHV). To book an appointment call SHV Melbourne CBD Clinic: (03) 9660 4700 or call SHV Box Hill Clinic: (03) 9257 0100 or (free call): 1800 013 952. These services are youth friendly.
Your GP (doctor)
Your local community health centre
Women’s health organisation for your region.
Sources
Millar, E., (2022). Abortion is no longer a crime in Australia. So why is it still so hard to access? The Conversation.
Utting, S., Douglas, H., Sheeran, N., Dingle, G. A., Bell, J., & Sharman, L. S. (2018). The cost of abortion access in Queensland: Data from the Children by Choice financial assistance program for disadvantaged women 2015-2017. Brisbane, Australia: Children by Choice.