Distinctive in its use of two disciplinary lenses-sociology and political science-Abortion in the United States provides a balanced scholarly analysis of the most salient issues in the pro-life/pro-choice debate.According to the CDC, more than 660,000 legal abortions were performed in the United States in 2013, yet despite these numbers, or perhaps because of them, the abortion war rages on in state legislatures, in Congress, and in court rooms. This work offers an eye-opening look at the enduring cultural clash between reproductive rights activists, who have argued that access to safe, legal abortion is critical for ensuring women's equality, and impassioned activists seeking to overturn Roe v. Wade, who fervently believe that abortion is unethical.Written for high school and college students as well as for general audiences seeking to better understand opposing viewpoints, it gives readers essential background information and addresses persistent questions regarding the abortion debate. The new Perspectives chapter features the compelling voices of those engaged in the front lines of this battle alongside those of scholars from a range of disciplinary perspectives. Notable activists and leading advocacy groups are profiled, followed by the latest data on abortion rates and public opinion. Carefully curated documents and recommended news outlets, websites, documentaries, and academic readings invite continued exploration.

Features an analysis of movement-countermovement dynamics and relies on scientific evidence to investigate contested claims over emergency contraception, late-term abortions, and the safety of the abortion procedure and its psychological outcomes

PrefaceAcknowledgments1 Background and HistoryIntroductionCriminalization: The 19th-Century DebateReform and Repeal: The Road to DecriminalizationRoe v. Wade and Doe v. BoltonAfter Roe: Pro-Life and Pro-Choice Movements Face OffPro-Life MovementPro-Choice MovementFrames and Framing: Tools for Understanding Abortion DebatesReferences2 Problems, Controversies, and SolutionsIntroductionConstitutional Legality of AbortionAmending the ConstitutionChanging the CourtState Regulation of AbortionGovernment Support of AbortionPolitical PolarizationHyde AmendmentGlobal and Domestic Funding RestrictionsFighting for the Rights of the UnbornPro-Life FramingPartial-Birth Abortion and InfanticideLate-Term AbortionsPrenatal Drug LawsThird-Party Fetal KillingFighting for the Rights of WomenPro-Choice FramingThe Abortion PillEmergency ContraceptionAccurate InformationEnvironmental SafetyAccessStigmaSolutions and Common GroundShifting Pro-Life and Pro-Choice FramesToning Down the RhetoricPolling to Identify Areas of ConsensusReferences3 PerspectivesIntroductionThe Roots of Roe: Not Liberty, but Privacy by Trysh TravisNormalizing Abortion: An Interview with a Reproductive Health Care Provider by Jennifer KeysThe Abortion Diary: Uncovering, Sharing, and Listening to the Archive We Hold within Our Bodies by Melissa MaderaTreating Each Other Like Drunk Girls in the Bathroom: A Pro-Life Feminist Finds Acceptance at the Women's March by Destiny Herndon-De La RosaWhy I Work for Planned Parenthood: Debunking Common Misconceptions about America's Leading Reproductive Health Care Provider by Brigid LeahyPregnancy Help Centers: Offering Women Choice and Hope in the Midst of Crisis by Jay HobbsFathers and Abortion by Bertha Alvarez ManninenWho Should or Should Not Be Born?: The Collision between Reproductive Rights and Disability Rights by Stefanija Giric4 ProfilesIntroductionPeopleOn the Pro-Choice SideBill Baird (1932-)Jennifer Baumgardner (1970-)Mary Steichen Calderone (1904-1998)Gloria Feldt (1942-)Sherri Chessen Finkbine (1930-)Kim Gandy (1954-)Alan Guttmacher (1898-1974)Frances Kissling (1943-)Lawrence Lader (1919-2006)Kate Michelman (1942-)Willie Parker (1963-)Cecile Richards (1957-)Margaret Sanger (1879-1966)Eleanor Smeal (1939-)George Tiller (1941-2009)Sarah Weddington (1945-)On the Pro-Life SidePhilip Benham (1948-)Judie Brown (1944-)Marjorie Dannenfelser (1965-)Serrin Foster (1955-)Wanda Franz (1944-)Paul T. Hill (1954-2003)Henry Hyde (1924-2007)Paul Marx (1920-2010)Norma McCorvey (1947-2017)Bernard Nathanson (1926-2011)Troy Newman (1966-)Joseph M. Scheidler (1927-)Christopher Smith (1953-)Horatio Robinson Storer (1830-1922)Randall Terry (1959-)Charmaine Yoest (1964-)OrganizationsCommon GroundCommon Ground Network for Life and ChoiceExhaleOn the Pro-Life SideAmerican Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ)American Coalition of Life Activists (ACLA)American Life League (ALL)Americans United for Life (AUL)Army of God (AG)Center for Bio-Ethical Reform (CBR)Center for Medical Progress (CMP)Christian Coalition of America (CCA)Concerned Women for America (CWFA)Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPC)Democrats for Life of America (DLA)Elliot Institute (EI)Family Research Council (FRC)Feminists for Life of America (FFL)Focus on the Family (FOF)Lambs of Christ (LC)Live Action (LA)March for Life Education and Defense Fund (ML)Moral Majority Coalition (MMC)National Right to Life (NRL)New Wave Feminists (NWF)Operation Rescue (OR)Operation Save America (OSA)Pharmacists for Life International (PFLI)Physicians for Life (PL)Priests for Life (PFL)Pro-Life Action League (PLAL)Pro-Life Alliance of Gays and Lesbians (PLAGAL)#ProtestPP (#PPP)Republican National Coalition for Life (RNCL)Students for Life (SL)Susan B. Anthony List (SBAL)TooManyAborted.com (TMA)Traditional Values Coalition (TVC)United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)On the Pro-Choice SideAbortion Care Network (ACN)Abortion Conversation Project (ACP)The Abortion Diary (TAD)Abortion Rights Mobilization (ARM)Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH)American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Reproductive Freedom ProjectAmerican Law Institute (ALI)Black Women's Health Imperative (BWHI)Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC)Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR)Center on Reproductive Rights and Justice (CRRJ)Feminist Majority (FM) and Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF)Guttmacher Institute (GI)If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive JusticeMedical Students for Choice (MSFC)NARAL Pro-Choice AmericaNational Abortion Federation (NAF)National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW)National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH)National Network of Abortion Funds (NNAF)National Organization for Women (NOW)National Women's Law Center (NWLC)Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health (PRH)Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA)Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC)Reproductive Health Technologies Project (RHTP)Republican Majority for Choice (RMC)Sex Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS)#ShoutYourAbortion (SYA)Sistersong: Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective (SS)/Trust Black Women (TBW)Relevant Government AgenciesInternationally Focused OrganizationsReferences5 Data and DocumentsIntroductionCurrent State Laws Regulating AbortionRegulations of Abortion PracticeLimits on Public FundingRight of RefusalMandatory Counseling, Waiting Periods, and Medical AccuracyParental InvolvementAbortion ServicesPrevalenceCharacteristics of Women Having AbortionsAttacks on Abortion ProvidersPublic Opinion Polling on Abortion IssuesHistorical DocumentsComstock Act (1873)American Law Institute Model Penal Code: Abortion (1959)Abortion in Perspective by Robert M. Byrn (1966)Abortion-A Woman's Decision, A Woman's Right (1969)Redstockings Abortion Speakout (March 21, 1969)Roe v. Wade (1973)The Hyde Amendment (1976)Mexico City Policies (1984-2017)Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) (1994)Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act (2003)Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt (2016)6 ResourcesIntroductionBooksUnderstanding the Abortion Controversy in the United StatesA Global Comparative ExaminationFurther Insights into the Pro-Choice PerspectiveFurther Insights into the Pro-Life PerspectiveNonprint SourcesDocumentaryFeature FilmsInternet Sources7 ChronologyGlossaryIndexAbout the Authors