RALEIGH - The 35th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion served as a launching point for supporters and opponents to assess the decision's broader impact beyond a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy.

Ten days after hundreds of abortion opponents gathered in downtown Raleigh for a march and rally, about 50 people on the other side of the debate gathered outside the Capitol on Tuesday for a lunchtime rally commemorating the Roe v. Wade ruling.

Lined up along Morgan Street, Tuesday's rallygoers aimed their signs and cheers beyond the issue of abortion to calls for a more comprehensive approach to family planning services.

"Real Sex Ed Saves Lives," one long paper banner said. "Birth Control Not Bans" was another popular slogan etched on brightly colored posters held overhead.

Lindsay Siler, public affairs coordinator for Planned Parenthood Health Systems' Raleigh office, said that it remains a continuous struggle to ensure that individuals have access to affordable birth control.

"We are out here to call upon our elected officials, to ask them to join us as we work to ensure that all individuals receive access to affordable, high-quality reproductive health care and that our teens receive access to comprehensive sex education," Siler said.

U.S. Rep. Brad Miller, a Democrat, was scheduled to attend Tuesday's rally, but a spokeswoman for Miller said a schedule change forced him to return to Washington early.

The rally drew a few heckles from passers-by and prompted numerous motorists to honk in support as they drove past.

Two weekends ago, N.C. Right to Life held its own march and rally in downtown Raleigh.

At a time when abortion opponents have broadened the debate to argue against embryonic stem cell research, the Jan. 12 rally drew an estimated 950 people, according to N.C. Right to Life.

"It's a sad day," organization president Barbara S. Holt said of the Roe v. Wade anniversary.

"Abortion doesn't just kill the unborn child, it hurts the mother, the father, the extended family. So it has an impact on society as a whole."