‘It started with the pill.’
murder of already born babies was rampant in most aboriginal cultures, no doubt going all the way back to early Cro-Magnon man, due to sickness or deformity or otherwise lack of fitness for survival...Captain Cook wrote of the English sailors discomfort at this practice; they had to steel themselves to accept the cultural differences...
I'm speaking about the ethical standards up until the early '60s. There were abortions, but the practice was unaccepted, hidden forever as a stain that never would go away. Most women took responsibility for the children they conceived. It might've been previously unplanned marriage, going away then coming up with some explanation for the child, or adoption. When that responsibility was gone, and the attitude shifted to a pregnant mom was doing the child a favor, it was one giant step down that slippery slope!