White Male Obstetricians Used Abortion to Eliminate Midwives

The criminalization of abortion began as a business tactic. Up until the founding of the AMA in 1847, virtually all deliveries were attended by women-midwives. Men were rarely in the delivery room. In this most womanly of events, women took care of women. Abortion was common, advertised openly, and legal throughout the United States. Married women used …