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Margaret Sanger

History of Reproductive Rights 

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Roe v. Wade (1973)

  Margaret Sanger

• The Margaret Sanger Papers Project at New York University

• A biography of Margaret Sanger from the Womens History site.  

Woman Rebel:  The Margaret Sanger Story. Peter Bagge (Drawn & Quarterly, 2013). 

• A Graphic history biography of Margaret Sanger life as a birth-control activist, nurse and educator.

History of Reproductive Rights

Cover of Birth Control Review, December 1921

(Credit:  Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College/Public Domain)

One of the most important goals of the feminist movement was to ensure that women had control over their sexuality and reproduction.

As a result, the movement prioritized fighting for access to birth control and abortion which would give women a greater degree of sexual freedom.

Feminists Margaret Sanger (1879-1966) and Katharine McCormick(1875-1967) approached doctor Gregory Pincus (1903-1967) about the development of an oral contraceptive, which they have long lobbied for.

In 1960, the birth control pill was put on the market in the United States. However, several states had laws prohibiting access to birth control.

Timeline of the development of the birth control pill.

The Bitter Pill:  Harvard and the Dark History of Birth Control, The Harvard Crimson (September 28, 2017)

• In the 1950s, two Harvard professors tested the birth control pill on mentally ill Massachusetts women and low-income Puerto Rican women

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

In 1965 the Supreme Court struck down state laws prohibiting birth control for married couples in the court case Griswold v. Connecticut.

• The court stated that laws prohibiting birth control violate the right to privacy.

Click for a Video Summary of Griswold V. Connecticut

Timeline of Important Reproductive Freedom Cases Decided by the Supreme Court, ACLU

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Overview of the Case

Roe v. Wade Fast Facts, CNN

PBS's Teacher's Guide: Suggestions for Active Learning provides excellent lesson plans for teaching about birth control pills.