Teenage Abortion and the Right to Privacy (1979)

Abortion rights for minors quickly emerged as a flashpoint in the wake of the Roe v. Wade decision. A dozen states enacted parental consent laws, all of which The Supreme Court found unconstitutional. This episode from The MacNeil/Lehrer Report examines a Massachusetts law before the Supreme Court that required parental consent for teenage abortions (Bellotti v. Baird II) and considers the fundamental tension between privacy rights for minors and parental rights

Teenage Abortion | The MacNeil/Lehrer Report | February 22, 1977 This video clip and associated transcript appear from 03:21 - 08:03 in the full record.