{"id":351975,"date":"2016-04-04T11:02:46","date_gmt":"2016-04-04T16:02:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/family\/reproductive-rights\/reproductive-rights-law-and-history.html"},"modified":"2023-07-27T14:10:13","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T19:10:13","slug":"reproductive-rights-law-and-history","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/family\/reproductive-rights\/reproductive-rights-law-and-history.html","title":{"rendered":"Reproductive Rights: Law and History"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Reproductive Rights: Law and History<\/h1>\n
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\n By Eric Harvey, J.D.<\/a> | Legally reviewed by Aviana Cooper, Esq.<\/a>\n | Last updated\n
\n \n <\/i>\n Legally Reviewed\n <\/summary>\n\n
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This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n\n

\n \n <\/i>\n Fact-Checked\n <\/summary>\n\n
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The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n<\/section>\n

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The United States of America has always used the law to regulated reproductive rights.  In the late 19th century, the Comstock Act banned the interstate distribution of contraceptives. More recently, through litigation, the nation has gained and lost reproductive rights, like the right to an abortion. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n

Procreation has been at the center of much legal controversy for as long as collective memory can recall. And the decision whether to procreate, or bring a pregnancy to full term, is no longer a constitutionally protected right.<\/p>\r\n

Learn about the history of reproductive rights<\/a> law below. Continue reading for more information about abortion access, abortion rights, contraceptives, and related matters.
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Reproductive Rights Laws: Overview<\/h2>\r\n

State and federal laws on a person’s reproductive rights have fluctuated widely over the past few centuries. These fluctuations have occurred largely due to varying social norms. They have also occurred due to religious beliefs, politics, and activist groups.<\/p>\r\n

For example, in the early 19th century, women had access to reproductive planning methods. These methods included the use of contraceptives<\/a> and other forms of birth control. They also included access to legal abortions<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

Later in the century, the country grew more hostile toward "immoral" sexual behavior. Moreover, some lawmakers believed procreation between married couples was the only reason to engage in sex. This led to the "Comstock laws<\/a>."<\/p>\r\n

The Comstock Laws banned the use of contraceptives. They also prohibited doctors from providing information about birth control.<\/p>\r\n

It wasn’t until 1965 that the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a law prohibiting contraceptive use to prevent pregnancy in Griswold v. Connecticut<\/i><\/a>. This allowed married couples to make educated decisions about family planning.<\/p>\r\n

The Supreme Court extended this right to single people in Eisenstadt v. Baird<\/i><\/a>, <\/i>basing its decision on guaranteeing equal protection under the 14th Amendment<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

And in 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade<\/a><\/i>, eliminating constitutional protections for access to abortion care. It is now left up to the states to decide whether someone can legally have an abortion.<\/p>\r\n

Margaret Sanger and the Reproductive Rights Movement<\/h2>\r\n

Margaret Sanger founded the women’s reproductive rights movement shortly after the Comstock Laws took effect. Sanger believed that it was essential for people to control their reproductive health care. She also believed that they had the right to control the size of their family through birth control. She fought for contraceptive education and counseling by publishing a series of articles in 1916, "What Every Girl Should Know<\/a>."<\/p>\r\n

Sanger later opened the first U.S. birth control clinic in New York. The clinic educated people on family planning and other reproductive birth control techniques. It was shut down in violation of laws at the time. This clinic and others eventually became Planned Parenthood.<\/p>\r\n

Sanger died in September 1966. By her death, birth control for married couples was legal. Sanger is heralded as a pioneer in the reproductive rights movement in America. But she is not without critics, arguing that she held questionable views on race and eugenics<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

Reproductive Rights Law and Abortion<\/h2>\r\n

Abortion rights have been the most contentious issue in the history of reproductive rights. It has represented some of the greatest legal challenges the modern United States has faced. Interestingly, abortions were legal and performed for many years before the U.S. Constitution.<\/p>\r\n

An anti-abortion campaign<\/a> led by physician members of the American Medical Association was one of the factors leading to the eventual criminalization of abortion.<\/p>\r\n

The landmark Roe v. Wade<\/i><\/a> ruling by the Supreme Court in 1973 overturned state laws that criminalized abortions. And for the first time, it was determined that the right to abortion was protected under the Constitution.<\/p>\r\n

In Roe<\/i>, the Court found that the Constitution protects the fundamental right to privacy. It said this right to privacy protects abortion rights. This right is also a topic in other reproductive rights cases.<\/p>\r\n

Abortion Regulation After Roe v. Wade<\/i><\/h2>\r\n

In the years following Roe<\/i>, federal lawmakers restricted federal funding of abortions. For example, a person cannot use federal Medicaid funds for abortion services except in cases of rape or incest or if the pregnant person’s life is at risk.<\/p>\r\n

Some state legislatures<\/a> also restricted access to abortion. Restrictions include:<\/p>\r\n