Roe v. Wade reaches 47 years, but abortion was legalized in Washington state 50 years ago

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a defender and advocate for abortion rights, speaks at Planned Parenthood in Seattle. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a defender and advocate for abortion rights, speaks at Planned Parenthood in Seattle. Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Roe v. Wade reaches 47 years, but abortion was legalized in Washington state 50 years ago 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

The Roe v. Wade decision, which made abortion legal across America, came down from the Supreme Court 47 years ago, but 2020 marks a half-century since the 1970 referendum that made it legal to terminate pregnancies in Washington.

It was an emotional issue then. "Every child should be wanted," was the slogan used by proponents, including several Republican state senators. "Kill Referendum 20, Not Me," proclaimed opponents' billboards, which featured a fetus.

The abortion issue is far from "settled," even in a pro-choice state. Washington voters further strengthened abortion rights at the polls in 1991, and the Legislature run by Democrats passed the 2018 Reproductive Parity Act, requiring all insurance plans in Washington state that cover maternity care to also cover abortions.

An annual March for Life turns out thousands in Olympia each year, so many that bishops of the Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle have split duties to hold two masses, before lobbying the Legislature. One is for those driving down from the north, others for those hailing from south of Olympia.

A national poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, published on Wednesday, found that 69% of Americans do not want to overturn Roe v. Wade. Nearly 60% want abortion legal in all or most situations, 41% want it illegal in all or most situations. On some issues, the 1,215 adults polled support restrictions being imposed in such Republican-run states as Texas and Ohio.

Before Referendum 20, abortion in Washington was a matter of economics. A clinic on Fourth Avenue quietly terminated pregnancies for those who could afford it. Some women flew to Japan: Former U.S. Rep. Jolene Unsoeld wrote about such a trip -- and the support of her conservative father -- in the first volume of her autobiography.

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The Legislature was moved to act, however, by two deaths from botched illegal abortions. As well, a Renton physician, Dr. A. Frans Koome, had gone public that he was terminating pregnancies.

A half-century later, there are about 18,000 abortions performed each year in Washington state. Unlike many states in the Midwest and South, the Evergreen State imposes no major restrictions to access. Efforts to enact a requirement that parents of pregnant minors be notified have gone nowhere.

The 1970 legalization effort had support from Republican Gov. Dan Evans and GOP state senators. The most intense opposition came from pro-life Democrats, a species that has become largely extinct in this state. The last outspoken anti-abortion Democratic legislator, Rep. Mark Miloscia of Federal Way, switched parties in 2014 and won a State Senate seat as a Republican. (Miloscia was defeated in 2018.)

A generation ago, pro-choice groups had ties to both parties. Then-U.S. Rep. George H.W. Bush of Texas was such a vocal advocate of family planning that colleagues nicknamed him "Rubbers." He would change position when named Ronald Reagan's running mate in 1980.

Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice Washington have since become down-the-line Democratic endorsers, and support for a woman's right to choose has become for Democrats a litmus test issue.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., has held frequent news conferences at Planned Parenthood's clinic on East Madison Street. Murray and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., went there last year to declare opposition to U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

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The state's congressional delegation reflects divisions in society. U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Seattle Democrat, wrote an article for the New York Times last summer, explaining an "excruciating" personal decision under the title: "The Story of my Abortion: What it taught me about the deeply personal nature of reproductive choice."

But Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., is a regular speaker at the March for Life in Washington, D.C., and was featured by the National Catholic Register under the headline "My Down Syndrome Son's Life is worth living." McMorris Rodgers and Rep. Dan Newhouse have signed a brief to the Supreme Court suggesting that Roe v. Wade be overturned.

McMorris Rodgers has unleashed tweets attacking Planned Parenthood, speaking of "horrendous acts" and "unethical and illegal practices," and asking: "What kind of country are we if we think @PPFA's actions are acceptable?"

Very few Americans have been on both sides of the issue. President Trump is one of them. Trump once pronounced himself "very pro-choice." On Friday, however, he will become the first President ever to appear at the Washington, D.C., March for Life.