The Washington Post is reporting that “Roe vs. Wade” plaintiff Norma Mccorvey is dead at 69. In 1970, McCorvey became Jane Roe when she found herself unmarried, without funds, and seeking to end an unwanted pregnancy at age 22. Under the pseudonym, she would become the plaintiff in the pivotal 1973 case which gave women a constitutional right to have an abortion. To this day, it is still one of the most famous 20th century Supreme Court cases and was a major factor in the recent presidential election in regard to appointing a conservative Supreme Court Justice.
Norma McCorvey passed away today at an assisted-living facility in Katy, Texas from a heart ailment.
Norma McCorvey’s identity remained hidden until around 1980. She encountered harassment for a period of time once her identity was made known. In 1995, she was in the headlines again after announcing she was a born-again Christian who was now pro-life and genuinely sorry about the famous Supreme Court decision. The court ruling allows women to seek having an abortion during their first two trimesters.
Roe vs. Wade lawsuit
The class-action lawsuit was filed in March 1970 in Texas on behalf of the plaintiff and all women in similar situations, with “Jane Roe” being the lead plaintiff. Due to the length of time it took for the case to meander through the court system, the ruling came too late for McCorvey.
She gave birth to her baby and placed the child up for adoption. An adoption attorney introduced McCorvey to Linda Coffee and Sarah Weddington, two lawyers who were searching for any woman who wanted an abortion in Texas.
Who was Norma McCorvey?
Norma McCorvey once admitted to feeling like she was treated with disdain by feminist activists because she was a poor, drug-abusing, blue-collar woman and not polished or educated.
Born Norma Nelson, she dropped out of high-school and married Elwood McCorvey when she was 16. The couple left Texas for California. McCorvey would later return to Texas pregnant with her first child, who would be raised by her mother. McCorvey’s second child was raised by the father and she stated that her third pregnancy was a result of rape.
However, she later recanted the rape claim, confessing she used it as an attempt to make a stronger case for an abortion. She had also been involved in a lesbian relationship for years, but denounced it after converting to Christianity.
