Day of Mourning

In perhaps its most divisive and controversial decision since Dred Scott, the United States Supreme Court overturned the infanticide and prenatal homicide laws in all fifty states by legalizing abortion procedures during every stage of pregnancy from conception until just before the moment of birth. Delivered on January 22, 1973 the Roe v. Wade decision sent shock waves throughout the nation--the effects of which are still felt after thirty-five years and over forty-eight million lost lives.

In a remarkably argued majority opinion, Associate Justice Blackmun introduced several creative constitutional innovations--including a heretofore unrecognized “right to privacy.” Like the Dred Scott decision before it, this case actually only exacerbated the debate the court set out to resolve.