Before Roe V. Wade, This Woman Strove To Bring Abortions Out Of Back Alleys And Into Living Rooms
Carol Downer wanted to make abortion safer in a time when it was illegal.
KPCC:
The Secret Home Abortion Movement That Started In LA Two Years Before Roe V. Wade
[T]wo years prior to the 1973 Supreme Court decision, a woman from Eagle Rock had made it her mission to take abortion from the back alley to the living room. Her name is Carol Downer and she helped create an underground network of unlicensed women who performed home abortions. She wrote books on female anatomy, went to jail, and ran a women’s health and abortion clinic in Hollywood which burned down in 1985. (Greenspon, 4/14)