By Democratic Socialists of America

Chicago Women’s Graphics Collective, cwluherstory.org

By Christine R. Riddiough

1965. That was the year the Supreme Court ruled in Griswold vs Connecticut that it was unconstitutional for the government to prevent married couples from having access to birth control. It was still illegal for unmarried women to get birth control unless they had a medical reason for requiring it. Abortion was illegal throughout the United States. It was not until 1973 that the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that bans on abortion in the first trimester were illegal. Sex education was non-existent. Most women growing up in that time knew little or nothing about sex or reproduction.

1965 seems like ancient history now. But if we look at what’s happening to reproductive rights, it doesn’t seem to be quite such a distant past.

Source: Jane to the Rescue: Breaking Barriers to Abortion Access