Shelley Lynn Thornton (born June 2, 1970) is the biological daughter of Norma McCorvey. Also referred to by the pseudonym "Roe Baby", Thornton is the child at the center of the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade. Her identity was not publicly known until 2021.[1]
Shelley Lynn Thornton was born to Norma McCorvey on June 2, 1970, at the Dallas Osteopathic Hospital. At three days old, she was adopted by then-engaged Texas residents, Ruth Schmidt and Billy Thornton. Shelley Lynn Thornton was two-and-a-half years old when the Roe v. Wade ruling was issued. She graduated from Highline High School in 1988 and entered secretarial school.[2] Her birth mother first made contact with Thornton in 1989 when she was a teenager living near Seattle.[3]
Thornton married her boyfriend, Doug, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in March 1991; they had a son later that year. She later had two daughters, one in 1999 and another in 2000, and moved to Tucson, Arizona, for her husband's job.[3] Thornton met her biological half-sisters, McCorvey's two other daughters, in March 2013. Thornton never met her birth mother, although they had several telephone conversations.[3]
Thornton was McCorvey's third child. Although McCorvey had sought an abortion, she was prohibited from doing so by the laws in Texas at that time. McCorvey eventually brought, and won, a lawsuit, securing for women the constitutional right to an abortion. Despite McCorvey's desire to abort the fetus, Thornton was not aborted as a fetus, because the court proceedings in Roe v. Wade took too long.[disputed – discuss]
Many years later, after Thornton learned of her identity as the "Roe baby", she engaged in telephone conversations with McCorvey. McCorvey told Shelley Thornton that she was placed for adoption because, Shelley recalled, "I knew I couldn't take care of you."[2] When Thornton asked McCorvey about her biological father, McCorvey said little: she told Thornton that his first name was Bill and she described what he looked like.[2] Thornton also learned about her two older half-sisters from McCorvey, Melissa and Jennifer.[4]
In a 2021 interview, Thornton stated that she was not pro-choice or pro-life. She grew up not knowing that she was the fetus in the Roe case until her birth mother appeared on the Today show in 1989 and talked about her desire to meet her daughter. In response, a journalist for the National Enquirer found Thornton as a teenager and told her about her prenatal history, which made her sad. In 1991, Thornton became pregnant and did not have an abortion because abortion was "not part of who I was". By 2021, she had met her two half-siblings but not her birth mother. She nearly met her birth mother in 1994; according to Thornton, McCorvey told her on the phone that she should have thanked her for not having an abortion. Thornton's reaction was "What! I'm supposed to thank you for getting knocked up... and then giving me away?" She told her birth mother that she "would never, ever thank her for not aborting me".[3] She reflected, "When someone's pregnant with a baby, and they don't want that baby, that person develops knowing they're not wanted."[5]
Reversal of Roe
In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court decided another abortion case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. In Dobbs, the Court explicitly overruled Roe. Thornton released a statement speaking out against the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the 1973 landmark Roe case. In a statement to ABC News, Thornton indicated that she worries the Dobbs ruling could be an omen for future unrest. She told ABC News through her spokesperson, "Too many times has a woman's choice, voice, and individual freedom been decided for her by others. Being that I am bound to the center of Roe v. Wade, I have a unique perspective on this matter specifically." She added, "I believe that the decision to have an abortion is a private, medical choice that should be between a woman, her family, and her doctor. We have lived in times of uncertainty and insecurity before, but to have such a fundamental right taken away and this ruling be overturned concerns me of what lies ahead."[6][7]
References
^O'Connor, Lydia (September 9, 2021). "'Roe Baby' At Center Of Landmark Abortion Case Is Identified For 1st Time". HuffPost. BuzzFeed, Inc. from the original on December 29, 2021. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
^ abcPrager, Joshua (September 9, 2021). "The Roe Baby". The Atlantic. from the original on June 24, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
^ abcdStump, Scott (September 9, 2021). "Identity of 'Roe baby' revealed after decades of secrecy". NBC News. from the original on June 24, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
^ abVanHoose, Benjamin (September 9, 2021). "Woman Whose Conception Sparked Roe v. Wade Case Breaks Silence: 'I'm Keeping a Secret but I Hate It'". People. from the original on May 4, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
^The Roe Family: An American Story by Joshua Prager, W. W. Norton & Company, September 14, 2021, page 116
^Deliso, Meredith; Osborne, Mark; El-Bawab, Nadine; Kekatos, Mary; Svokos, Alexandra; Pastor, Kate; Yamada, Haley; Guerilus, Stephanie; Gaffney, Melissa (June 28, 2022). "Supreme Court abortion ruling live updates: Americans can get abortions in Canada: Trudeau". ABC News. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
^Supreme Court abortion ruling live updates: Americans can get abortions in Canada: Trudeau
External links
Daughter of 'Jane Roe', the woman behind the landmark abortion case, comes to terms with her identity
Daughter of Jane Roe Has 'No Regrets' About Never Meeting Her Birth Mother After Landmark Abortion Case
February 27, 2023
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Shelley Lynn Thornton born June 2 1970 is the biological daughter of Norma McCorvey Also referred to by the pseudonym Roe Baby Thornton is the child at the center of the 1973 U S Supreme Court decision Roe v Wade Her identity was not publicly known until 2021 1 Shelley Lynn ThorntonShelley Thornton in 1988Born 1970 06 02 June 2 1970 age 52 Dallas Texas U S Known forBaby in Roe v Wade caseChildren3ParentNorma McCorvey biological mother Contents 1 Life 2 Discovery of Roe v Wade connection 3 Reversal of Roe 4 References 5 External linksLife EditShelley Lynn Thornton was born to Norma McCorvey on June 2 1970 at the Dallas Osteopathic Hospital At three days old she was adopted by then engaged Texas residents Ruth Schmidt and Billy Thornton Shelley Lynn Thornton was two and a half years old when the Roe v Wade ruling was issued She graduated from Highline High School in 1988 and entered secretarial school 2 Her birth mother first made contact with Thornton in 1989 when she was a teenager living near Seattle 3 Thornton married her boyfriend Doug of Albuquerque New Mexico in March 1991 they had a son later that year She later had two daughters one in 1999 and another in 2000 and moved to Tucson Arizona for her husband s job 3 Thornton met her biological half sisters McCorvey s two other daughters in March 2013 Thornton never met her birth mother although they had several telephone conversations 3 In 2021 Thornton s identity as the Roe baby was released in Joshua Prager s book The Family Roe An American Story 4 Discovery of Roe v Wade connection EditThornton was McCorvey s third child Although McCorvey had sought an abortion she was prohibited from doing so by the laws in Texas at that time McCorvey eventually brought and won a lawsuit securing for women the constitutional right to an abortion Despite McCorvey s desire to abort the fetus Thornton was not aborted as a fetus because the court proceedings in Roe v Wade took too long disputed discuss Many years later after Thornton learned of her identity as the Roe baby she engaged in telephone conversations with McCorvey McCorvey told Shelley Thornton that she was placed for adoption because Shelley recalled I knew I couldn t take care of you 2 When Thornton asked McCorvey about her biological father McCorvey said little she told Thornton that his first name was Bill and she described what he looked like 2 Thornton also learned about her two older half sisters from McCorvey Melissa and Jennifer 4 In a 2021 interview Thornton stated that she was not pro choice or pro life She grew up not knowing that she was the fetus in the Roe case until her birth mother appeared on the Today show in 1989 and talked about her desire to meet her daughter In response a journalist for the National Enquirer found Thornton as a teenager and told her about her prenatal history which made her sad In 1991 Thornton became pregnant and did not have an abortion because abortion was not part of who I was By 2021 she had met her two half siblings but not her birth mother She nearly met her birth mother in 1994 according to Thornton McCorvey told her on the phone that she should have thanked her for not having an abortion Thornton s reaction was What I m supposed to thank you for getting knocked up and then giving me away She told her birth mother that she would never ever thank her for not aborting me 3 She reflected When someone s pregnant with a baby and they don t want that baby that person develops knowing they re not wanted 5 Reversal of Roe EditIn 2022 the U S Supreme Court decided another abortion case Dobbs v Jackson Women s Health Organization In Dobbs the Court explicitly overruled Roe Thornton released a statement speaking out against the Supreme Court s decision to overturn the 1973 landmark Roe case In a statement to ABC News Thornton indicated that she worries the Dobbs ruling could be an omen for future unrest She told ABC News through her spokesperson Too many times has a woman s choice voice and individual freedom been decided for her by others Being that I am bound to the center of Roe v Wade I have a unique perspective on this matter specifically She added I believe that the decision to have an abortion is a private medical choice that should be between a woman her family and her doctor We have lived in times of uncertainty and insecurity before but to have such a fundamental right taken away and this ruling be overturned concerns me of what lies ahead 6 7 References Edit O Connor Lydia September 9 2021 Roe Baby At Center Of Landmark Abortion Case Is Identified For 1st Time HuffPost BuzzFeed Inc Archived from the original on December 29 2021 Retrieved September 9 2021 a b c Prager Joshua September 9 2021 The Roe Baby The Atlantic Archived from the original on June 24 2022 Retrieved September 9 2021 a b c d Stump Scott September 9 2021 Identity of Roe baby revealed after decades of secrecy NBC News Archived from the original on June 24 2022 Retrieved September 9 2021 a b VanHoose Benjamin September 9 2021 Woman Whose Conception Sparked Roe v Wade Case Breaks Silence I m Keeping a Secret but I Hate It People Archived from the original on May 4 2022 Retrieved September 9 2021 The Roe Family An American Story by Joshua Prager W W Norton amp Company September 14 2021 page 116 Deliso Meredith Osborne Mark El Bawab Nadine Kekatos Mary Svokos Alexandra Pastor Kate Yamada Haley Guerilus Stephanie Gaffney Melissa June 28 2022 Supreme Court abortion ruling live updates Americans can get abortions in Canada Trudeau ABC News Retrieved June 28 2022 Supreme Court abortion ruling live updates Americans can get abortions in Canada TrudeauExternal links EditDaughter of Jane Roe the woman behind the landmark abortion case comes to terms with her identity Daughter of Jane Roe Has No Regrets About Never Meeting Her Birth Mother After Landmark Abortion Case Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Shelley Lynn Thornton amp oldid 1140952631, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
