The Pre-Roe Pro-Life Movement in Minnesota and New York

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history of activism – all of these factors influenced the early anti-abortion leaders of Minnesota to take action, and served these actors well in the post-Roe years. Further motivated by the Roe v. Wade decision, MCCL’s efforts since 1973 can be explained by its earlier activity in the pre-Roe years. The group’s reluctance to deploy religious language in favor of medical and political rhetoric reveals both MCCL’s mimicry of proabortion tactics and its efforts to appeal to a broad citizenry. It was MCCL’s ability to identify and align itself with the unique characteristics of Minnesota’s political culture and the appropriate vocabulary of the abortion debate that allowed much of its great success. The same holds true in instances later explored in the national post-Roe debate. Further, this early and highly organized group became a breeding ground of educated and experienced anti-abortion leaders, who moved on to the newly formed national groups after 1973. For instance, MCCL founders became involved in the National Right to Life Committee and Americans United for Life, serving as presidents, editors, and board members in the years after Roe v. Wade. This long history of the Minnesota abortion debate is best explained chronologically. I will justify MCCL’s language and tactics through an identification of the themes that emerged in the nineteenth century abortion debate, an explanation of its rival group’s activists and efforts in the 1960s and 70s, and an analysis of how MCCL fit into Minnesota’s political culture in its pre-Roe years. Further, the politicization of the issue after the Roe v. Wade decision necessitated flexibility among national pro-life activists. Those who were able to adapt and broadly appeal to the dominant rhetoric and multiple constituencies later in the movement were the most successful activists. These 7
major factors led to MCCL’s victories before Roe v. Wade and also led to the success of certain flexible and attentive national pro-life leaders and groups after the decision. Although the MCCL story is significant for its accomplishment of preserving the state’s nineteenth century abortion law, it is of greater importance because this statewide story had nationwide ramifications in the Roe decision itself. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, the decision’s author, grew up in a working-class neighborhood of St. Paul, Minnesota and met future Chief Justice Warren Burger in kindergarten. These “Minnesota Twins” lived just six blocks apart. 8 After graduating from Harvard in 1932, Blackmun returned to Minnesota to practice law and remained there for over twenty-five years. 9 Burger, too, had strong ties to Minnesota; he did not live anywhere else until 1953. 10 Blackmun later worked as the Mayo Clinic resident counsel, “a position in which he would function not only as a lawyer but as a member of the senior management of the multimillion-dollar nonprofit corporation.” 11 He later wrote his nine years in the position were “the happiest of my professional life.” 12 As an extension of these blissful years, Blackmun remained tied to the institution for life, as his medical experience proved a crucial asset in his Supreme Court position. According to Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times reporter Linda Greenhouse, Blackmun’s “ties to Mayo and to the medical profession…made him more aware than the other justices of the winds of change blowing through the health care establishment.” 13 Blackmun returned to Mayo to research at the institution soon after Burger assigned him the Roe case. In July 1972, Blackmun sifted 8 Greenhouse, 5-6. 9 Ibid., 13. 10 Ibid., 21. 11 Ibid., 18. 12 Ibid., 18. 13 Ibid., 74. 8
Page 1 and 2: Abortion as a “Medical Problem Br
Page 3 and 4: Table of Contents Acknowledgements
Page 5 and 6: Abbreviations ACCL - American Citiz
Page 7 and 8: this first neighborhood grassroots
Page 9 and 10: in New York, California, and Colora
Page 11: is a unique and important one to te
Page 15 and 16: Well before Blackmun’s 1972 Mayo
Page 17 and 18: Chapter 1: The Pre-History of the C
Page 19 and 20: practice. The law as it stands is t
Page 21 and 22: would have functioned independently
Page 23 and 24: instances also increased awareness
Page 25 and 26: threat of abortion criminalization
Page 27 and 28: the actions of new twentieth-centur
Page 29 and 30: of the MCLTP. 3 In the early 1970s,
Page 31 and 32: from the Great Depression in its se
Page 33 and 34: underestimated his opponents, as MC
Page 35 and 36: who shared a “communitarian ethic
Page 37 and 38: However, the Council did not offer
Page 39 and 40: issue-based and activist politics f
Page 41 and 42: Blake and Fred Mecklenburg and lobb
Page 43 and 44: yet united front against abortion l
Page 45 and 46: anti-abortion movement, but also be
Page 47 and 48: emerging organizations across the c
Page 49 and 50: the 1970s, and an additional thirte
Page 51 and 52: When news of Roe and Doe broke, MCC
Page 53 and 54: their efforts prior to the decision
Page 55 and 56: the part of state groups and create
Page 57 and 58: physical space in Minneapolis and r
Page 59 and 60: 58 of them were enacted. 37 Even fo
Page 61 and 62: looms as a menace to all mankind an
Page 63 and 64:
War.” 56 President Gerald Ford di
Page 65 and 66:
the 1976 Republican Party Platform,
Page 67 and 68:
should be noted that pro-life activ
Page 69 and 70:
with us.” 81 Needless to say, by
Page 71 and 72:
ecord of being vindictive.” 90 Ca
Page 73 and 74:
decades of involvement. Yet before
Page 75 and 76:
nationwide effort organized by the
Page 77 and 78:
in drastic (at the extreme, irrecon
Page 79 and 80:
and increase political effectivenes
Page 81 and 82:
willing to be window dressing - no
Page 83 and 84:
Warren Schaller, and others to form
Page 85 and 86:
women, which would become the speci
Page 87 and 88:
On multiple levels, ACCL became a p
Page 89 and 90:
multi-issue approach was a tactic a
Page 91 and 92:
asserted, “often a few key people
Page 93 and 94:
Lampe, and others) split to form AC
Page 95 and 96:
nomination. Jefferson’s tactics w
Page 97 and 98:
administration. 82 Lampe took over
Page 99 and 100:
and was also a member of Planned Pa
Page 101 and 102:
As previously explored, Mecklenburg
Page 103 and 104:
million; Schweiker’s stance and a
Page 105 and 106:
Almost immediately after her appoin
Page 107 and 108:
The last straw came when Mecklenbur
Page 109 and 110:
on the national scene cautiously, m
Page 111 and 112:
abortion debate she encountered as
Page 113 and 114:
Conclusion Supreme Court Justice Ha
Page 115 and 116:
legislatures, and celebrated occasi
Page 117 and 118:
ecognized nationwide as “one of t
Page 119 and 120:
Bibliography Archives and Interview
Page 121 and 122:
Gorney, Cynthia. Articles of Faith.
Page 123:
Press, Eyal. Absolute Convictions:
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The Pre-Roe Pro-Life Movement in Minnesota and New York

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