History of Abortion:

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Abortion has been around in America since the very beginning[1]. In fact, the earliest settles would often encourage abortions before the "quickening" stage in the pregnancy. There were many reasons to this including not having resources to bare children. It was not until the late 1800's where states began to make abortions illegal. They did this because at the time, abortions were performed with dangerous methods and were often surgical. Because of this, many states decided to legalize abortions. However, as technology advanced and abortion methods improved, the laws failed to advance with it and abortions still remained illegal. Women were still in need of abortions so they would resort to illegal unsafe methods also known as "back alley" abortions.[2] Even to this day, women who live in areas with limited access to abortion clinics are forced to resort to "back-alley" abortions.[3]

Abortions By States:

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The number of medical abortions that are legally administered throughout the course of the year differ heavily between each state. States that have a much stronger Republican representation present lower numbers of abortions on an annual basis in comparison to those states that have a democratic representation[4]. Even though their numbers are lower, this does not mean that less abortions are performed in those states. Instead, it means that more illegal or "back-alley" abortions are performed there. States with Republican dominance such as Alabama, Louisiana, and Tennessee have reportedly one abortion clinic each within their state borders.[5] However states such as California and Oregon with stronger democratic influence have make abortion much more accessible. [6]

References:

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  1. “Abortion Access.” NARAL Pro-Choice America, Wide Eye Creative, www.prochoiceamerica.org/issue/abortion-access/.
  2. “History of Abortion.” National Abortion Federation, 29 Jan. 2015, prochoice.org/education-and-advocacy/about-abortion/history-of-abortion/.
  3. S;, Seims. “Abortion Availability in the United States.” Family Planning Perspectives, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7364033/.
  4. “State Bans on Abortion Throughout Pregnancy.” Guttmacher Institute, 3 Mar. 2020, www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/state-policies-later-abortions.
  5. “Here Are the Basic Facts about Abortion That You Should Know.” Amnesty International, www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/sexual-and-reproductive-rights/abortion-facts/.


  1. ^ prochoice. "History of Abortion". National Abortion Federation. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  2. ^ prochoice. "History of Abortion". National Abortion Federation. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  3. ^ "Abortion Access". NARAL Pro-Choice America. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  4. ^ Seims, S. (1980-03). "Abortion availability in the United States". Family Planning Perspectives. 12 (2): 88, 93–101. ISSN 0014-7354. PMID 7364033. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Abortion Information by State". www.plannedparenthood.org. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  6. ^ "Where is Abortion Illegal? | Abortion Limits by State". www.plannedparenthoodaction.org. Retrieved 2020-05-15.