Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides a fundamental "right to privacy" that protects a pregnant woman's liberty to choose whether or not to have an abortion.
The case began in Texas when a woman (Jane Roe) sued the Dallas County District Attorney. Prior to this case, women were only able to obtain an abortion if her life was at risk. The law as it stood prior to 1973 took the choice out of a woman's hands. Women had abortions before Roe v. Wade, but they were not safe or legal. Women died having unsafe abortions. It was first argued in 1971, reargued in 1972, and decided in 1973. For 46 years women have had this right, but today it's under attack.
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