It imposes the death penalty on married women who procure abortionswithout the permission of their husbands. Abortion, the purposeful termination of a pregnancy, is often presented as if it were a new, cuttingedge, scientific product of the modern era, when it is, in fact, as old as recorded history. The history of abortion starts father before the pinnacle case of. The practice of abortion, the medical removal of a fetus, has been known since at least ancient times. A decade of uneven progress guttmacher institute4 executivesummary ened, and in three cases the criteria were narrowed. The medical history of abortion in south africa, c. Abor a oman 3 introduction if you are thinking about abortion, you have the right to have all your questions answered. Nonetheless, especially in subsaharan africa and latin. This legislation was also a way for the medical profession to tighten its control over womens health care. Wade, which made abortion legal and marked an important turning point in public health policy. Evidence suggests that lateterm abortions were performed in a number of cultures. The first recorded evidence of induced abortion is from the egyptian ebers papyrus in 1550 bc. How we got there and got to where we are now may surprise you.
History of abortion project gutenberg selfpublishing. Abortion policies and reproductive health around the world 2 united nations department of economic and social affairs. Population division introduction the programme of action of the 1994. Wade was a landmark legal decision issued on january 22, 1973, in which the u. In one of the many curious twists that mark the history of abortion, the campaign to criminalize it was waged by the same professional group that, a century later. Through much of western history abortion was not criminal if it was carried out before the foetus moved in. Judicial history and legislative response congressional research service 3 word person appears, the use of the word is such that it has application only postnatally. The surprising history of abortion in the united states cnn. The earliest legal ban on abortion dates from the assyrian 11thcentury bce code of assura, a harsh set of laws restricting women in general. History of abortion prehistory to 5th century abortion was a common practice in the ancient world.
A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Guttmacher institute abortion in womens lives5 abortions performed in the first trimester pose virtually no longterm risk of such problems as infertility, ectopic pregnancy, spontaneous abortion, congenital malformation, or preterm or lowbirthweight delivery. Abortion was once simply part of life in the united states. In the united states, the history of abortion goes back much farther than the 1973 supreme court case roe v.
Abortion policies and reproductive health around the world. Various methods have been used to perform an abortion, including the administration of abortifacient herbs, the use of sharpened implements, the application of abdominal pressure. Antiabortion legislation was part of a backlash against the growing movements for suffrage and birth control an effort to control women and confine them to a traditional childbearing role. This article explores the medical history of abortion in south africa during the last three decades of the twentieth century, focusing on the role played by doctors in their clinical encounters.