You are here:About>Education>Women's History> Social Reform Movements> Abortion History> Abortion and Religion> Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion
About.comWomen's History
Newsletters & RSSEmail to a friendSubmit to Digg

Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion

From Jone Johnson Lewis,
Your Guide to Women's History.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!
Founded in 1967, the Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion was a network of clergy who referred women to safe (though still illegal) abortions. There were 26 ministers and a rabbi at the founding of the network, and more than a thousand when the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court Decision made the organization unnecessary.
The existence of a group of clergy willing to refer women to abortion services was important primarily for two reasons:
  • safer abortions: women who consulted with the service could often find more reliable, safer abortion procedures than if they relied on their own informal networks.
  • ethical statement: the presence of clergy willing to take professional and legal risks to aid women seeking abortions was an ethical statement, important in changing social attitudes towards the legalization of abortion.
 All Topics | Email Article | | |
Advertising Info | News & Events | Work at About | SiteMap | Reprints | HelpOur Story | Be a Guide
User Agreement | Ethics Policy | Patent Info. | Privacy Policy©2008 About, Inc., A part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.