Abortion has been and still is a very often debated and argued topic in society dating back to well before it’s legalization in 1973 due to the landmark case Roe vs. Wade. Both pro-life and pro-choice sides have fought hard to push their stance on the American public through a variety of violent and non-violent methods. Will a definite decision on the legality of it ever be reached one way or the other? No, most likely. However, this does not mean that there is not a clear and defined answer to the question: Should Abortion remain legal? All the ideas, thoughts, myths, and truths surrounding abortion need to be examined and looked at carefully before a decision can be formed. Otherwise, an answer can never truly be found. However, when all the evidence is looked at with regards to abortion, the result is overwhelmingly for the elimination of it.
Abortion deals greatly with the idea of responsibility and pre-planned thought. Most abortions are a result of a lack of responsibility or thought of the people involved. In this way it similarly does what welfare does: takes away the consequence associated with people’s actions. Welfare gives the message that it is okay not to try and find a job or do something with your life because the government will be there to support you. Abortion acts in the same manner; it acts as a safety net for people to land on after they have made a mistake. Should people be allowed to forget their mistakes or be made to learn something from them? By having abortion available, people are allowed to fool around, to act irresponsible, to become pregnant, and then, to try and solve all the mistakes with another possible mistake. Both of the parents (male and female) are responsible for becoming pregnant (The idea of a pregnancy from rape and the fact that the woman is not at fault for becoming pregnant will be discussed later), so it seems reasonable that they should have to deal the consequences of their actions. By allowing abortions, people are given the opportunity to mess up and then fix their mistake easily and inconsequentially. Thus, abortion should definitely be disallowed because it reduces people’s responsibility and judgement when it comes to sex. People are already given enough chances to “screw up” when it comes to things such as crime (light sentences for first offenses) and their overall life (welfare). They should at least be made to act responsibly when it comes to sex.
Another very debated aspect when it comes to abortion is the idea of the fetus’s status. Is it a child? Is it alive? Is it a person? One thing which can not be argued is the fact that it is innocent and has no reason to die. The fetus has done nothing to deserve a horrific death and therefore, for this reason, should not be punished by being aborted. To answer the original questions, the idea of humanity or personhood needs to be examined closely. Firstly, fetuses show a major sign of life that all humans exhibit as early as eighteen days: a beating heart (Meyers 172). This characteristic certainly classifies it as a living human. By six weeks, all the vital organs are present and brain waves can be recorded from it (Guernsey 25). These are again concrete signs of life that can not be debated. There are many more ideas concerning the fetus and its status of humanity. Humanity is not something that one gains or acquires in any way (Brown and Evangelisto). People can not achieve humanization; it is innate in them since conception. Otherwise, something would need to be added to it to achieve human status, and as professor Jerome Lejeune said, “If a fertilized egg is not by itself a full human being, it could never become a man, because something would have to be added to it, and we know that does not happen. (Brown and Evangelisto).” What these ideas show is that humanity, in regards to the amount of it present in a fetus, can not be argued. Since the moment of conception, the fetus has as much humanity instilled in it as the next person. Also, it can not be debated that the fetus is completely innocent of committing any crime, especially one that carries a sentence of death. In plain terms, abortion is the process killing an innocent, living person which in the United States has been determined to be illegal, since it is the idea of murder.
Women’s status in society has been constantly improving during the 60’s and 70’s and many have associated the decision to make abortion legal as one of the fundamental forces in this revolution. If this is true, it appears then giving women the right to have an abortion should cause higher upstanding in society. Does it really though? Why else would such prominent women’s rights activists as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Margaret Sanger, and Simone de Beavuvoir call it such things as “child-murder,” “degrading to women,” “most barbaric,” and “a disowning of feminine values (Mathewes-Green).” For example, women can be used repeatedly by males, since every time a pregnancy (mistake) happens, an abortion can eliminate it. Essentially, it is another way in which women are debased for male convenience and profit (Jong 185). By allowing abortion, a message is being sent to society that is more acceptable to look at women as sex objects instead of real people. It allows the male created stereotypes of women to find their way back into society’s thinking. If abortions were banned and women would have to go through with pregnancies, then it should force a lot of men to look at women as real people and think about their partner’s feelings toward a pregnancy. If women, or men for that matter, want a society in which men have much greater status than women do, then by all means, abortion should be allowed. However, most people would and should pick the choice of a co-existent one where men and women are equal in societal view and status. For this reason, abortion should be made illegal.
The word of choice comes up very often when abortion is debated. The pro-choice side talks a lot about the idea of a woman’s right to choose. They say that women should have the right to regulate over their own bodies, not the government. Their theory can be summed up in one statement: abortion is a woman’s choice. All these arguments seem nice and reasonable when first looked at, but they need to be carefully examined before a conclusion can be drawn. With regards to the idea that women should be able to regulate their bodies, not the state, one needs to remember that the fetus, while definitely classified as a person, has no way to voice its opinion. Someone needs to state his opinion, which in most cases would be “Please do not kill me,” and this responsibility falls on the state and national government. A song by a music group Value Pac written from the point of an unborn fetus greatly reflect this, “...I’m a victim of a good time...” “...she left me here to die, mommy don’t go” and “another casualty of irresponsibility is what’s become of me. (Sheely 3).” The innocent must be protected if they can not protect themselves. Society has set restrictions on certain activities so that order is ensured and the vulnerable are protected. This is why laws have been established against such things as murder, robbery, rape, and so forth. Abortion violates the rights of the vulnerable in a similar manner that the aforementioned crimes do. People who have been innocently robbed or killed have laws set up for them to say that the person responsible for this crime needs to be punished. The same needs to be done for abortion to protect the lives of the innocent fetus’s that are brutally murdered every day. Pro-choicers talk a lot about the idea of abortion being a woman’s choice to have an abortion and about a woman’s freedom. However, when a woman becomes pregnant, she has made a willful choice to have sexual intercourse and thus, run the possibility of becoming pregnant. The choice does not lie in whether or not an innocent baby should be killed, but instead of whether or not to have sex. The women has the right to have sex, but her rights regarding any consequences of it, stop immediately afterwards. Once a woman has made a choice to possibly carry a living fetus, then she has no right to decide it’s life or death, because in the United States absolute freedom does not exist, especially in the area of life and death (Meyers 173). When it comes to the idea of rights in society, the fact is that one person’s rights stop as soon as they infringe on another person’s. The woman’s right to murder her soon to be born fetus stops when she takes any action towards this goal because she is infringing on the right of the fetus to life as guaranteed in the Constitution. The fetus has rights and the woman has rights, and both of these should be weighed equally. In today’s society, the rights of the woman are taken to be more important than the rights of the silent fetus. They should be considered equally, and since the fetus can not make any declarations about its life while it is in the womb, someone needs to for it, this being the government. The idea of choice comes up a lot in relation to abortion, but a question that is rarely asked is “why not give the baby the choice?” It would most surely choose to be born. I have never met a person that was aborted (tried), lived through it, and was unhappy they were born.
The health of the mother is another concern when it comes to the idea of abortion and its legality in society. In other words, having an abortion is safer than childbirth, in general. This seems like a reasonable idea that most people would believe. However, under close examination, it is not as entirely believable as it seems. Firstly, there are virtually no situations that require a pregnancy to be terminated to safe the mother’s life. Numerous medical personnel have testified in front of Congress stating this fact. As Pamela Smith, MD, said in a U.S. Senate Hearing Report 104-260 on Nov. 17, 1995, “There are absolutely no obstetrical situations...which require a partially delivered human fetus to be destroyed to preserve the life or health of the mother.” This deals with a specific kind of abortion, partial-birth, but the idea still holds the same. Not only is the health of the mother not helped or saved by having an abortion, as many believe, it is often hurt in many ways following an abortion. Numerous physical side effects have been linked to abortions in recent years. Breast cancer is a common physical problem that has been linked to abortion. On Nov. 5 of 1994, the “Journal of the National Cancer Institute” published the results of a comprehensive study that showed an average increase of about 50% in breast cancer after having an abortion (Daling 1586). Women under the age of 18, one of the main groups that has abortions, showed an increased breast cancer risk of 150% (Daling 1587). Women age 30 and above had an increased breast cancer risk of %110 (Daling 1588). This means that about 6,000 out of 100,000 women who have had abortions will get breast cancer whereas without an abortion they would have not. Assuming that 75% of these women can be cured, this leaves 1,500 women dying out of 100,000 who have had abortions. Thus, the death rate due to breast cancer for women having abortions is 1.5%. On the other hand, 5 out of every 100,000 childbirths result in the death of the mother (Daling 1588). This is a .005% death rate for childbirth. Anyone can plainly see that the death rate for abortions (just those due to breast cancer) is much greater than the death rate due to natural childbirth (300X greater). Another study found a 30% increased risk of a tubal pregnancy after one abortion and a 160% increased risk of one after two or more abortions (Anonymous 253). Placenta previa is a condition producing severe, life-threatening bleeding during pregnancies. According to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1981, there was a 600% increased risk of this condition happening after having an abortion. Some other common problems that can occur due to an abortion include pelvic inflammatory disease, uterine perforations, and retention of the placenta. Besides all of the medical problems and risks associated with abortions, there are also numerous psychological risks associated with abortion. One study found that 50% of women, after having an abortion, suffered emotional and physical disturbances lasting for months that may include depression, insomnia, nervousness, guilt, and regret (McGovern and Celeste). Very often people also feel sad or guilty after having an abortion. It is only a natural reaction to having killed an innocent person. Very rarely do people have abortions and feel nothing psychologically afterwards. There are some people who feel relieved once the abortion is over, but that is because these people know they have messed up and need to fix their mistake the only way they see how. Hopefully, by making abortions illegal, these people will begin to realize not to make the same mistake again.
Some people that are generally opposed to abortion think that it should be allowed for certain exceptions, the main ones being rape and fetal deformity. They say that the mother should not have to carry the baby since it is not her fault for being raped and she is completely innocent. She has made no choice to become pregnant as in most normal situations. While this is true, the real question is whether or not the pre-born fetus should be blamed and punished for the crimes of the father. The answer is no, it most definitely should not be. The circumstances of the pre-born’s conception should not modify or negate in any way his or her right to life. Another problem that would arise if abortion were illegal except for rape, is that of differentiating between a true rape victim and an abortion-minded liar (Brown and Evangelisto). Having women prove they were raped to obtain an abortion only leads to disastrous results. Some women would lie about rape in order to obtain an abortion. This idea may seem ridiculous to some people, but Norma McCorvey, the plaintiff in Roe vs. Wade, admitted to lying about rape. If a woman who has been raped does not want to keep the baby at all, then she should give him or her up for adoption since there are lots of parents waiting to adopt babies. The idea of physical deformity in a fetus is another abortion exception possibility. The idea that the fetus should be allowed to be killed is a very prevalent one. This, however, is a totally utilitarian idea that those who are abnormal and malformed should not be allowed to live. Essentially it is saying that certain lives are not worth living. While this may be true in some examples, the mother should not be the one to say whether or not the life is worth living. Those with the abnormality should be the ones to decide. In most cases, people with defects grow up to lead successful, happy, and enjoyable lives. In the very rare case, that someone utterly hates his or her life to the fullest extent, than perhaps maybe he or she should not be alive and should terminate it through a variety of methods. However, they at least need a chance to experience life and try to enjoy it. Again, if the parents do not want the child, then they should give it up for adoption and let someone who wants him or her take care of him or her. By allowing abortion for rape or fetal deformity a message is being sent to the pre-born that because you are different from most other people or the circumstances involving your creation are different, you should not be allowed to experience life as all others are.
The legality of abortion is a question to which an answer will probably never be concluded in society. While this is not due to lack of reasons, arguments, statistics, or ideas, it has lots to do with ideas that just need to be examined more carefully and closely. One of the many reasons that abortion should not be allowed is that it kills an innocent, living human which has a right to life. Another reason is that abortion lowers people’s responsibility and does not make them responsible for their decisions related to sex and pregnancy. Thirdly, abortion lowers women’s status in society; it degrades them. Some of the reasons against abortion which when examined closely are found to be false include the idea that abortion is safer than childbirth and the idea that woman have the right to choose to do what they want with their bodies. While these arguments may seem solid and reasonable when casually glanced at, they are not entirely the whole story. The right to life is stated at the very beginning of the United States Constitution and it should not be taken away from any human who is innocent and has done nothing to deserve its removal. On this basis, abortion should be made illegal and millions of pre-born babies would get to experience the rights that all of us have exercised every single day.
Works Cited
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