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The controversy of abortion in the United States is unique because
there seems to be no grounds of compromise between two completely polar
sides. That is mostly because either a living human is or isn’t being
killed. This is a case between life and liberty, but the ambivalence of
the complexities of abortion make it hard to settle the two sides.
There is much debate whether this is an action of life or death, and
the difference is rather large. Yet both sides to the abortion dispute
share a common goal: that abortions should become safer, and the number
of abortions should decrease.
Abortion is defined as the inducing of premature delivery in order
to destroy offspring. It is a chosen miscarriage. Within abortion there
are many different questions. Does the constitution defend an
individual’s right to abortion? Does this include confidentiality? Is a
developing fetus a being? Should the law allow abortions for rape or
incest cases?
The constitution does allow abortion. The right to privacy and
reproductive rights, although not directly mentioned in the
Constitution or Bill of Rights, is an enumerated right. The Supreme
Court Decision in 1973, Roe vs. Wade, legalized abortion in the first
trimester. Since then, over 35 Million women have had legal abortions
(Cozic/Tipp 53). In America, 24% of pregnancies end in abortion, and
41% of that is on teenagers. 88% of abortions are performed during the
first trimester.
When a fetus is actually living is hard to define. Factually, the
heart begins to beat after 18-25 days, but the brain function after 40
days. Some people claim you are a person directly after conception,
while others believe that a grouping of 46 chromosomes does not make
you a human, but a potential life. Whether or not they are a living
human being depends on whether they are protected by the right to life.
Abortions for rape or incest victims is another controversial topic.
Babies born of these acts are not intended at all, as the sexual act
was forced and no contraception or precaution could be taken. Killing
the babies from these actions is penalizing them for something they had
no choice in the matter of.
This dispute is the link between two groups; Pro-Choice and
Pro-Life. Naturally, each side is the absolute reversal of the other.
That is why negotiation is so difficult.
Pro-Life, or “right to life”, is the group that is against abortion.
They are usually republicans, or conservatives. They claim human life
begins at conception; thus making the fetus a person and elimination of
such as that, manslaughter. The unborn are innocent, and deserve their
right to life. The issue of abortion to them is one of civil rights-
they believe all humans justify equality, even those that aren’t born
yet. In the case of rape or incest, they still believe the child should
not be punished for a criminal’s wrong doing.
Abortion is legal in our country, but Pro-Lifers hope to make an
amendment that gives all living humans from conception until death
equal protection under law. Pro-Life advocates also support Adoption,
which they consider a positive alternative to pregnant women
considering abortion.
A major foundation for the Pro-Life group is religion. Most are
Christian, and believe the bible supports their views in several
scriptures that basically say God knows and loves you from the moment
you are conceived (Currie 28). Only about 24% of those who are highly
religious support abortion. The less religious a person is, statistics
say, the more likely they are to be pro-abortion (Benson/Herrmann 17).
The group that is pro-choice believes mostly in a woman’s right to
choose. These are mostly democrats, or liberals. They believe abortion
is a personal choice, and this freedom is protected for all
individuals. Their concern will abortions that making it illegal will
pose more problems, such as a rise in “back alley” abortions, which are
both unsterile and dangerous. Other concerns include self-abortions,
such as the famed “coat hanger” technique, and the possibility always
exists that the mother will kill the baby after its birth. This has
happened several times with young mothers.
Pro-Choice believes fetuses are a “mass of tissue” (Wilke, 1) rather
than a human being. Thus, they are denied personal rights to life and
are subject to the choices their host, the mother and owner of the
uterus, decides. Human Personhood begins later in the gestation or at
birth. They also believe that every child born should be wanted, and
reducing the number of unwanted children will untimately lower the
abused children in this world. They also consider the fact that the
nation is already overpopulated.
Making abortion illegal will not prevent it from happening, claim
pro-choicers. This is true, as is the case with illegal drugs such as
marijuana, cocaine, etc. Just because they are illegal doesn’t mean
people still don’t do them. The Pro-Choice group also worries about
restricting abortion rights. In the cases of partial birth abortion,
which occurs into the second and third trimester, they usually remain
open. Once you start limiting abortion rights you are limiting a
person’s right to choose for themselves.
Pro-Choice supports the decision in Roe vs. Wade, and claims it has
“saved enormous numbers of lives, improved women’s health, and made for
stronger families” (Currie 37). Before Roe vs. Wade, the estimated
amount of illegal abortions was between 200,000 to a million. In 1995,
over a million abortions were legalized: double the amount of legal in
1972.
I began researching this paper believing myself to be 100%
pro-choice. Then I read many different articles about both sides of the
conflict. Also, as an aside, I asked 16 of my friends, ages 14-19, what
they felt about abortion and which side they were on. Most of them did
not know which side to be considered on, because they were in the
middle. They felt that every person should have the right to choose for
themselves, but they believe that the act of abortion is wrong. Some of
them were upset that some people rely on abortion as an escape for
unprotected sex and its repercussions. After hearing many people
proclaim their thoughts on abortion, and reading various literature on
the topic, I found myself at the middle, too. I still believe every
woman should have the freedom to govern her life and make her own
decisions. Abortion should not be illegal- the result would be people
doing it anyway, but in hazardous conditions. I would rather they have
the procedure done by a licensed doctor or practioner. In the case of
3rd trimester abortions or partial birth, I believe they are only
necessary if the health of the mother or child is risked. One important
aspect of abortion that I think should be more prominent is education.
Many people do not know a lot about the actual procedure of abortion,
and I think anyone who is seriously considering one should be well
informed on the process of abortion, as well as the other choices they
can make.
Bibliography
Benson, John M. and Melissa J. Herrmann. “Right to Die or Right to Life?” Public Perspective. June/July 1999: Pages 15-19
Cozic, Charles and Stacey Tipp. Abortion: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhaven Press Inc., 2000.
Currie, Stephen. Abortion: An Opposing Viewpoints Digest. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1991.
Robinson, Bruce A. Abortion: All Sides to the Issue. 1996-2001. Ontario Consultants. October 22, 2001. www.religioustolerance.org.
Sherman, Scott. “Choosing Our Reproductive Rights”. Newsday. September 30,2001. October 22, 2001. www.newsday.com.
Tribe, Laurence H. Abortion: The Clash of Absolutes. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1990.
Wilke, Dr. and Mrs. J.C. Abortion Information You Can Use. 1998. Heritage House 76 Inc. October 25, 2001. www.abortionfacts.com.
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