Harvard Radcliffe Institute will hold a major public conference January 26–27 to probe the complex and unpredictable ways that Roe v. Wade and its aftermath shaped the United States and the world beyond it for nearly half a century. The existential issue of abortion—and the galvanizing impact of Roe in particular—transformed the nation’s politics and public policy and its social movement energies, as well as the operations of the courtroom and the clinic. 

This opening session of the conference features speakers with a range of perspectives from the front lines of debates about abortion, birth, and birth disparities. Each will tell stories from their work and talk about the work of stories in their own social movement and thought leadership.