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5/05/08

Controversial Issue: Should Abortion be a Woman’s Personal Choice?

Background/History:

Since 1973, Abortion has been one of the greatest issues of the nation. There are people that are pro-choice and pro-life supporters. Pro-choice advocates are people who maintain that the mother should be able to make a decision over her own body. Pro-life, on the other side, are people who think that the fetus is a human being and it should have the right to be born, and that abortion is murder and it should be punished. In the following article the author introduces some of the court cases involving the abortion issue.

The U.S. Supreme court April 18, 2007, voted, 5-4 to uphold a 2003 federal law prohibiting an abortion procedure, intact dilation and extraction, the first time the high court had supported a ban on a specific type of abortion. The procedure, labeled partial-birth abortion by its opponents, was used under rare circumstances, usually late in the pregnancy term. It was also the first time the high court had upheld a law restricting abortions without an exception for the mother’s health since the land mark 1973 Roe V. Wade. The combined cases were Gonzales V. Carhart et al. and Gonzales V. Planed Parenthood Federation of America. (Abortion: When Does Human Life Begin? Follow up: Supreme Court Upholds Ban on abortion Method, par#1).

There have been many court cases about abortion, but one of the most important ones is Roe V. Wade in 1973. It states that abortion is a constitutional right for a woman to get an abortion without getting punished in the early stages of pregnancy. The women who get abortions have been punished since early ages. For example: in ancient Middle East, while they had rough penalties for murder, they only had fines for abortions. “Fines for abortions were higher the further into a woman’s pregnancy they were performed – reflecting the belief that the fetus life became more valuable as it develop.” (Abortion: when does human life begin, par#1).

Pro Argument #1:

For pro-choice supporters the fetus is not considered a human being.

From the point of view of most pro-choice advocates, the fetus before viability is at most potential life, a developing life, a developing mass of cells that cannot yet claim rights. They say that pro-life proponents make a moral and medical mistake by trying to equate the life of an unconscious, singled-celled zygote with the life of a full-fledged, conscious woman. (When Does Human Life Begin?, par# 23).

The people from pro-choice argue that the baby it is not a human being , so it does not have the same rights as the mother. They say that pro-life supporters make a mistake by protecting the life of someone who does not even move, with the life of a baby completely grown. Abortion supporters think that the women should be the one to make a decision because she knows what she is doing. And it should be legal if she decides to have an abortion, because the baby does not think and it cannot be compared to the life of the mother. The mother should decide if she has an abortion or if she has the baby. The pro-choice supporters argue that the women are capable of making her own decisions on her own body. And they say that the fetus is just a bunch of cells, it should not be considered as a human life. The mother knows what she is doing; therefore, she should be able to make her own decisions. They are trying to say that the fetus should not be recognized by law. And if the mother wants to get an abortion, then she should be able to get it without getting punished. For example: if the mother knows that she is not going to take care of the baby and she does not want to take the responsibility of another human being, then she should be able to have an abortion. They think that not having the baby is better than having the baby because if she is not prepared to have the baby then she should not. Pro-choice supporters also give medical reasons as to any abortion should be allowed.

Pro Argument #2:

Pro-choice believe that the fetus is just cell and it should not be considered a baby. They give medical reasons to support their statement.

Like pro-life advocates, pro-choice proponents cite medical and spiritual arguments to defend their position. From fertilization to viability, they argue, the fetus does not have many of the biological traits even minimally associated with being a person. More than 50% of induced abortions occur before the eight week of gestation, they point out, when the fetus is still only about an inch long and has fewer cells, less animation and less brain functioning than many insects. Many medical abortions (those induced by drugs), they add, occur during the first few weeks after conception, when the fetus is just a few millimeters large.”(Abortion: When Does Human Life Begin? par. #24).

Abortion supporters maintain that when the abortion is done the fetus has fewer cells than an insect. They say that the fetus is not considered a person. They point out that the abortions induced by drugs, happen on the first weeks of pregnancy. Pro-choice advocates maintain that as long as the abortion is done on the first weeks of the pregnancy the abortion should not be considered murder. They state that when the abortion is done in the first weeks, the fetus is just a few millimeters large and it is not even close to being a person. For example, when a woman finds out that she is pregnant and the father is not ready to take a huge responsibility, then she decides to have an abortion, but she is judged by some people in society. The fetus is not considered a human being; it is just a bunch of cells. And its brain does not work the way an adult’s brain would work so it cannot even move. They observe that when a woman has experience an abortion, the people around her blame her like she has committed a sin. But they do not realize that the fetus is not a human being, so they should not treat her like a murderer.

Con Argument #1:

Pro-life supporters are people that believe that a woman should not decide over the life of the fetus because they believe that abortion is murder. On the following quote the author addresses some of the issues that occurred during the court case Roe Vs. Wade.

On the other side of the debate are those who call themselves pro-life. Pro-life advocates want to see Roe overturned and abortion outlawed. They maintain that fetus is a human being with an absolute right to life like anyone else. That the right to be born, they say, overries the mothers the right to make decisions about her body since her decision to abort affects the life of another human being, the unborn baby. Abortion, in their view, is murder and so should not be sanctioned by society. (Abortion: When Does Human Life Begin?, par. #3).

Pro-life supporters think that the fetus is a human being. They say that the fetus has the right to be born. And the mother should not make a decision because it involves the life of another human person. And the life of the fetus is more important to the pro-life supporters. They maintain that abortion is murder and it should not be legal. They also think that the women who have practiced abortion should be punished. They do not care about the mother’s decision or if the mother is in danger of dying. For example, if the woman got raped, in their opinion, the woman should have the baby even if she does not know who the father is. Another example, the doctor tells the woman that the baby may have some health problems; the Pro-life supporters think that the woman should have the baby. They claim that the fetus life is more important than the mother’s decision. For example, if the mother is in danger of dying, they think that the mother should have the baby even if it costs her her life. In other words Pro-life advocates believe that abortion equals murder.

Con Argument #2:

Pro-life advocates believe that a girl under 18 should have the permission of her parents in order to get an abortion because she is not responsible of her own actions.

Opponents denounce health exceptions for procedures like IDE if they go beyond situations that threaten the life of the woman. They argue that parental involvement is necessary because young girls need advice from their parents when contemplating getting an abortion. They also criticize plan B, which they could encourage sexual promiscuity in young teens if it becomes widely available. Overall, critics say that the federal protection of easy access to abortion, mandated by Roe decision, ought to be overturned. (Update Abortion: par#7).

Opponents of abortion say that women that have had an abortion do not get abortions because they have health problems, but because they do not want to take the responsibility of having a baby and taking care of the baby. Most of them believe that young girls should not be able to get abortions without their parent’s permission. They say that when they are young, they need their parents advice to make what they think is the right decision. Pro-life supporters maintain that if they sale the drug called plan B without a prescription the young girls are just going to keep having sex without caring if they get pregnant. All Pro-life advocates think about is the life of the fetus over the choice of the mother. But most pro-choice supporters think that if the mother is not going to take care of the baby or they are going to be abused, then it would be better if they don not have the baby if they are just going to suffer. On the other side the pro-life advocates maintain that they still should have the baby and give it away. About the plan B they believe it should not be sale without prescription to young girls but then if they have a prescription the doctor would tell their parents, and if the parents get mad at their daughter maybe they would get hurt.

Societal Impact:

Pro-choice and Pro-life supporters have different opinions about abortion and when life begins therefore it will continue being a controversial issue.

Some opponents of banning IDE claim that a ban would represent the first step toward a complete prohibition. In fact, some conservatives have that exact goal in mind. Most people opposed to abortion base their beliefs on moral grounds; they believe that a human life is ended when a fetus is aborted. Unlike Abortion rights supporters, who champion the rights of the mother and contend that a fetus is not truly a human being because life begins at birth. Abortion opponents believe that life begins at conception. Many of them have such strong feelings about Abortion because they are certain that it equals murder. (Update: Abortion, par#6).

Abortion supporters argue that if the government were to ban the IDE (a method of abortion) then that would be their first step to ban abortion. And if they do ban abortion, then the government would be able to decide on a woman’s body, then a woman who got raped would not be able to get an abortion because it would be considered murder. And what if the woman has health problems and she is in danger of dying then she would have to have the baby at all costs. Pro-choice advocates believe that if the government bans that type of abortion then they would prohibit abortion completely. They also maintain that the pro-life supporters are the ones that are trying to ban that type of abortion to eventually ban abortion completely. They claim that this is the first time that one type of abortion is in danger of being ban since the court case Roe vs. Wade. Pro-life supporters want to ban abortion because they think that abortion equals murder. They believe that if they do not ban abortion they could not keep the people from committing a sin. In other words pro-life supporters want the government to be able to decide in a woman’s body, when she should be able to decide what is best for her.

Works Cited

“Abortion: When Does Human Life Begin?” www.issues&controversie.com. 22 Aug. 2005. 22 Jan. 2008 <http://www.2facts.com/‌ICOF/‌temp/‌61853tempi0400010.asp#i0400010_4>.

“Abortion: When Does Human Life Begin? Follow-up: Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Abortion Method.” Issues and Controversies. 18 Apr. 2007. 22 Jan. 2008 <http://www.2facts.com/‌ICOF/‌temp/‌62183tempib400070.asp?DBType=ICOF>.

“Update: Abortion.” Issues and Controversies. 9 Aug. 2002. 22 Jan. 2008 <http://www.2facts.com/‌ICOF/‌temp/‌62978tempi1000520.asp?DBType=ICOF>.