Sarah Weddington, the lawyer who argued the case of Roe v. Wade in the U.S. Supreme Court, culled some materials from her scrapbook and has posted them on a new website, www.choicematters.us.The decision in Roe v. Wade was released by the U.S. Supreme Court on January 22, 1973, an opinion written by Justice Harry Blackmun. Among the historical artifacts Weddington has posted is the telegram she received from the high court to tell her of her victory in the matter. She's also posted the front page of The New York Times, where the case is touted, but only below the headline announcing the death of Lyndon Johnson, then a former president. And a state-of-the-archival photo of the nine justices is also in her online scrapbook, as well as pictures of Weddington at the time and through the years.
Weddington, who landed at the Supreme Court after she and another young lawyer, Linda Coffee, mounted a challenge to the Texas laws that made abortion criminal and difficult to obtain except in the most exceptional of cases, also has links to additional resources. One is to a legal site known as Oyez, where an audio recording of that actual arguments before the court (unusually, there were two oral arguments-- one in December 1971 and another in October 1972) can be accessed for listening.
The legacy of Roe, of course, did not end on January 22 or in 1973. Weddington notes on the site: "Our dream of making reproductive decisions truly personal came true that day.
However, our triumph was cut short by those who want to turn back the clock and penalize women by making personal decisions into government decisions once again. We’ve had to fight attacks and skirmishes ever since."
However, our triumph was cut short by those who want to turn back the clock and penalize women by making personal decisions into government decisions once again. We’ve had to fight attacks and skirmishes ever since."
Posted by Cindy Cooper
above: picture from Sarah Weddington's website, http://www.choicematters.us
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