Title: Why Is Roe v. Wade So Important?
Headings: Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade
Landmark Supreme Court Decision Legalizing a Woman's Right to Choose
The Origin of the Case
District Court Ruling
Appeal to the Supreme Court
Aftermath of Roe
Norma McCorvey’s Changing Views

Content: Why Is Roe v. Wade So Important? Humanities › History & Culture
Roe v. Wade
Landmark Supreme Court Decision Legalizing a Woman's Right to Choose
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A woman at a 1974 reproductive rights march in Pittsburgh, PA holds a sign reading 'Defend Womens Right To Choose'. Barbara Freeman/Getty Images
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Jennifer Goss is a Holocaust historian and history educator. She serves as a consultant for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the USC Shoah Foundation. our editorial process
Jennifer L. Goss
Updated January 23, 2020
Each year, the Supreme Court reaches over one hundred decisions that impact the lives of Americans, yet few have been as controversial as the Roe v. Wade decision announced on January 22, 1973. The case concerned the right of women to seek an abortion, which was largely banned under Texas state law where the case originated in 1970. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in a 7 to 2 vote that a woman’s right to seek an abortion is protected under the 9th and 14th Amendments. This decision, however, did not end the fervent ethical debates about this heated subject which continue to this day. The Origin of the Case
The case began in 1970, when Norma McCorvey (under the alias Jane Roe) sued the state of Texas, represented by Dallas District Attorney Henry Wade, over the Texas state law which banned abortion except in cases of life-threatening conditions. McCorvey was unmarried, pregnant with her third child, and seeking an abortion.