Kayla Weekes
English 10B Honors
Mrs. Kim-Miles
The Pro-Life vs Pro-Choice Debate
History of Abortion The 1973 court case Roe v. Wade was a landmark decision for United States history, and it still remains very controversial today. The Court ruled that the right to privacy applied to a woman’s choice to have an abortion, therefore legalizing the action. Abortion is officially defined as the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy. Today there are two groups continuing this battle, “pro-life” and “pro-choice”. People who define themselves as pro-life believe that abortion is unethical and insist that the Roe v. Wade decision be overturned. On the other side of the battle, pro-choicers fight to get even more liberation for women.
Pro-choice Argument The main argument of pro-choicers is that women should be responsible for anything involving their own body, “because no one else is living her life, and...she will have to live with [her] decision [to have an abortion]” (Pollitt 12). The government isn’t affected by a woman having an abortion, so they shouldn’t be involved in the decision. Although they’re pleased that abortion is legal in the United States, present day supporters are still pushing for modifications to the 1973 Supreme Court ruling: “Roe v. Wade was all about privacy, but the most private parts of a woman’s body and the most private decisions she will ever make have never been more public” (Pollitt
The issue of Abortions has been a controversy for years now. There are two main groups for this problem, Pro-Life, and Pro-Choice. Pro-Life supports the human rights of life should be embraced, by religion and ethics. Pro-choice is when someone wants to make this choice without no remorse of human life, but because someone wants no part of it raising one.
Abortion has been a complex social issue in the United States ever since restrictive abortion laws began to appear in the 1820s. By 1965, abortions had been outlawed in the U.S., although they continued illegally; about one million abortions per year were estimated to have occurred in the 1960s. (Krannich 366) Ultimately, in the 1973 Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade, it was ruled that women had the right to privacy and could make an individual choice on whether or not to have an abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy. (Yishai 213)
Abortion has been one of the biggest controversies of all time. Many people believe that women should get to decide what she would do with her body. The definition of abortion is; “The termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to being capable of normal growth”. Abortion is one of the most controversial topics today. Although there are two sides of the debate pro-choice and pro life, arguments are mainly centered around the Roe v. Wade decision, women’s rights and state restrictive laws.
Governor Mike Pence of Indiana recently signed the House Bill 1337, making Indiana the second state to ban abortion because of the fetus disability, ethnicity, or gender. The bill has escalated an uproar political debate between pro-life and pro-choice advocates.
Pro-Life or Pro-choice is the highly debatable question that is discussed when the topic of abortion is brought up. Abortion is one of many controversial topics in America. Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy. Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines abortion as; “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus: as a: spontaneous expulsion of a human fetus during the first 12 weeks of gestation b: induced expulsion of a human fetus c: expulsion of a fetus by a domestic animal often due to infection at any time before completion of pregnancy (Merriam-Webster).” When a woman elects to end her pregnancy, she has two options depending on how many weeks
Pro-choice has been a major topic ever since the women’s movements started in the early 1970’s, a question sometimes asked is that, if part of the population are so pro-life and worry about protecting a fetus, how come when the child is conceived they suddenly bash at you for having that unwanted child anyways, and that is hypocritical. In this essay, details include would be why people choose to be pro-choice, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the battle for reproductive justice for women and their right to make decisions for their body, advocates that are pro-choice, proposals for a pro-choice government, and Tomi Lahren being fired for stating she was pro-choice.
The controversy surrounding abortion has been long debated since the Roe v Wade case (1973) as pro-life advocates and pro-choice advocates go neck to neck on whether the process should be banned or remain legal. According to APA (American Psychological Association), abortion is the “medical or surgical termination of a pregnancy and is one of the oldest, most common and most controversial medical procedures”. To be Pro-Life means to be against the termination of a fetus; one who is not in favor of the practice. Pro-life advocates believe a woman should continue the pregnancy and deliver the baby no matter the circumstance. Pro-choice represents those who believe the woman deserves a choice to carry the baby or have an abortion. Although the 1973 Roe vs Wade case legalized abortion, abortion is still currently a much heated debate in America as the surgical procedure is possibly on the verge of becoming illegalized. However, abortion should definitely remain legal for various reasons such as individual freedom, victim protection, life opportunities, failed contraception, and it is not fair for the government to make such crucial decisions for a woman’s life.
With recent developments in Northern Irish legislation for ‘on demand abortions’, the debate between pro-life and pro-choice has been thrown back into the media and the morality of abortion scrutinized under the eye of third wave feminism, which has reclaimed the 1970’s slogan of ‘The Right to Choose’. The following essay intends to discuss how abortion is always an option and never a morally wrong act, as it is the mother’s choice to do with her body what she wishes and such the fetus has no right to leech off the mother when the host is not willing. In this discussion one shall, as Thomson did in ‘A Defence of Abortion’(1971), accept the stance that a fetus is a person from conception, to avoid that issue all together.
Is abortion right? Should it be legal? The arguments and laws for abortion have been going on since the early eighteen hundreds. Some people believe that the woman having the baby should be able to choose to have an abortion or not. More arguments arose about when a fetus was considered a baby and, if legal, when is abortion appropriate. Another major argument regarding abortion is whether or not a fetus can feel pain. Others think that they should have the baby and either keep it or give it up for adoption. Arguments continued and caused people to split into two different groups: Pro-Life and Pro-Choice. The Pro-Choice group believes women should be able to choose to have an abortion and it should be legal. Pro-Life is the complete
The restrictions and the debate that surrounds the issue of abortion has changed dramatically throughout the course of history and it continues to change until this very moment. All around the world and in every known society, women have used abortion to control their reproduction, regardless of it’s legality. Abortion used to be exercised freely in the United Sates, up Until all the states started to ban It and place a lot of restrictions on it. They stated that a woman can not abort except in extreme cases in which the mother’s life might be in danger. After the restrictions caused a lot of health issues and raised concerns on women’s health, The Government abolished all the restrictions. In this paper I will analyze and discuss three main positions on the issue of abortion. First, there are those who associate themselves with the title “pro-life”. These individuals are anti abortion, birth control, embryo research or anything that can control or cause any harm to the fetus. Second, there are those who at the other end of the spectrum who firmly believe that if a woman decides to abort, then it is her constitutional right to do so without any interference from the government. Third, are those who believe that if a woman is raped or her life is in danger, then abortion should be completely and solely up to the woman, but other than that, abortion should be illegal. This group of individuals are also for birth control and do not oppose educating
Abortion is a controversial topic that has plagued the country for decades. Even after the 7-2 Supreme Court trial (Roe vs. Wade) made it legal for women to choose to get abortions. This decision was based off the right of privacy coupled with the agreement between the woman and the state. Due to this decision abortion rights vary from state to state, in fact, about 85% of United States counties do not provide abortion services. Even though, abortion is ten times safer than the actual process of giving birth and 68,000 women died from resorting to “back-alley abortions.” Knowing all this, there are still two main groups arguing
The United States has been divided now over the issue of abortion for thirty-three years since the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade in 1973. As of today, over 45 million legal abortions have been performed in the United States. Pro-choice advocates hold these 45 million abortions as being 45 million times women have exercised their right to choose to get pregnant and to choose to control their own bodies. To pro-life, or anti-abortion, advocates these 45 million abortions constitute 45 million murders, a genocide of human life in the United States propagated by the court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade. The debate over abortion in the United States is thus a debate of two extremes. One side argues from the personal liberty of the mother. The
The debate between Pro-Life versus Pro Choice is a difficult and unruly topic. Individuals with different backgrounds, opinions, perspectives, and experiences all have particular stances on this sensitive topic. However, any individual can make an excellent and persuasive declaration on their stance with the use of rhetoric. Judith Jarvis Thomson author of, A Defense of Abortion, and Sidney Callahan author of, Abortion and the Sexual Agenda, use rhetoric in a marvelous manner. Rhetoric is a powerful tool, as will be expressed in the pages to follow, because it allows authors and individuals to take a stance in a scholarly fashion. In both pieces authors give viewpoints from both sides of the abortion debate, which
The issue of abortion is a controversial one; there are arguments on both sides of the debate. In 1973 the national case of Roe v. Wade, sparked political decisions that created a national right to abortion. Further, "Roe v. Wade declared that unborn children are not `persons ' nor are they entitled to the same constitutional protection as `born children '" (Baird, Rosenbaum, 2001). However, Roe v. Wade did not end the debate, nor, did it stop both sides for continuing the fight for their individual beliefs. On the one hand, pro-choice’s believe that woman are entitled to have abortions. Stating that an unborn child is under the rights of the pregnant women. On the other hand, pro-lifers believe that a woman should not have the right to obtain an abortion, stating that an unborn child is a human deserving the same constitutional rights as a child that has been born. The political goal most frequently mentioned by pro-lifers has been a Human Life Amendment (HLA) to thus, reverse Roe v. Wade. The HLA would declare unborn children to be "persons" deserving equal protection under the Constitution. From an ethical standpoint, one can take either side, for not only these reasons but also many more that we will further explore. I personally think that abortion is a decision that can only be made by the person in question, and not between that person and the government or an HLA. We well first look at the overall argument of the pro-choice side. After which, we will delve into the
Abortion is the termination of pregnancy before birth, resulting in, or accompanied by the death of the fetus. ("Abortion," Encarta 98). In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, dramatically changed the legal landscape of American abortion law. The result of the ruling required abortion to be legal for any woman; regardless of her age and for any reason during the first seven months of pregnancy, and for almost any reason after that. ("Status of Abortion in America"). In the Roe v. Wade case, Roe (Norma McCorvey), had claimed she was gang raped and attempted to have an abortion in Texas. ("Roe and Doe"). After hearing the case, the Supreme Court ruled that an American’s right to privacy included the right of a woman whether or not to have children, and the right of a woman and her doctor to make that decision without state interference, at least in the first trimester of pregnancy. ("Celebrating 25 Years of Reproductive Choice"). The moral issue of abortion—whether or not it is murder—has been debated since it was legalized in 1973. Roe v. Wade has been one of the most controversial Supreme Court decisions of the 20th century. ("Roe No More"). More than two decades since the Supreme Court first upheld a woman’s right to abortion, the debate over the morality and legality of induced abortion continues in the United States. ("Abortion," Encarta 98). Abortion is one of the most divisive and emotional issues facing United States policy makers today. ("Economics of