Roe V. Wade 'A Dubious Victory' for Women, Professor Says
Duke divinity professor Amy Laura Hall claims abortion, once considered a tragic necessity, has now become a societal norm
Tuesday, January 21, 2003
Many will hail Wednesday's 30th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision as a historic legal triumph. But Duke University divinity professor Amy Laura Hall says such a claim would be hollow.
"I find Roe v. Wade to be a dubious victory for women and children," says Hall, an assistant professor of theological ethics in Duke's Divinity School.
Abortion, once seen as a "tragic necessity," has become a societal norm in the past three decades, according to Hall, who has written an upcoming book, "Conceiving Parenthood," that looks at the rise of medical-technological consumerism in our society. Having children is now seen as a legally protected choice for a woman that must be weighed against her goals for success in the marketplace.
"Since Roe v. Wade, women have entered all sectors of the workforce, but the workforce has hardly changed to accommodate the fact that women have babies," Hall says. "This is, increasingly, a culture that accepts abortion as a tool to keep women compliant with the norms of the U.S. market."
The Supreme Court decision was a compromise on a "terribly difficult issue," says Hall, an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church. Many supported the decision as "the only answer to the question of the tragically unexpected pregnancy resulting from non-consensual sex," she said. For others, Roe v. Wade was "a concession made in the face of a society unwilling to make room for women and children in the larger economy."
Hall can be reached for additional comment at (919) 660-3403 (o) or (919) 613-2319. Her e-mail address is ahall@div.duke.edu.
