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2 - The Early Years

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 November 2022

Sally Sheldon ,
Gayle Davis ,
Jane O'Neill  and
Clare Parker
Sally Sheldon
Affiliation:
University of Bristol and University of Technology Sydney
Gayle Davis
Affiliation:
University of Edinburgh
Jane O'Neill
Affiliation:
University of Edinburgh
Clare Parker
Affiliation:
University of Adelaide
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Summary

Chapter 2 traces the Act’s early, formative years. We explain how its meaning was negotiated as women arrived in doctors’ surgeries seeking services that they now believed to be lawful and how doctors worked to understand and apply the new law. We explore how, over time, different interpretations of the Act coexisted, fell out of use or became entrenched in professional codes, internal policy and procedure documents, official guidance and medical curricula. The chapter ends in 1974 with the publication of two important texts discussing the workings of the Abortion Act in these early years: the sensationalist media expose Babies for Burning and the highly influential and authoritative Lane Report.

Keywords

Abortion Actabortiondoctorsabortion service providersmedical discretion’Abortion Games’women seeking abortionBabies for BurningLane Report
Type
Chapter
Information
The Abortion Act 1967
A Biography of a UK Law
 , pp. 28 - 65
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • The Early Years
  • Sally Sheldon, University of Bristol and University of Technology Sydney, Gayle Davis, University of Edinburgh, Jane O'Neill, University of Edinburgh, Clare Parker, University of Adelaide
  • Book: The Abortion Act 1967
  • Online publication: 03 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108677295.002
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  • The Early Years
  • Sally Sheldon, University of Bristol and University of Technology Sydney, Gayle Davis, University of Edinburgh, Jane O'Neill, University of Edinburgh, Clare Parker, University of Adelaide
  • Book: The Abortion Act 1967
  • Online publication: 03 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108677295.002
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Early Years
  • Sally Sheldon, University of Bristol and University of Technology Sydney, Gayle Davis, University of Edinburgh, Jane O'Neill, University of Edinburgh, Clare Parker, University of Adelaide
  • Book: The Abortion Act 1967
  • Online publication: 03 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108677295.002
Available formats
×