Should Abortion Be Legalized?

In the United States, twenty six states allow minors, defined as children twelve and older, to consent to contraceptive services; Michigan allows some minors, such as those who are married or have previously been pregnant, to consent; four states have no standing laws or policy (“An Overview” 1-2). The contraceptive access also varies across the country. Some states require comprehensive sexual education and for teens to be able to access contraceptives. Some lean more towards abstinence only education in the hopes teens will steer away from sexual activities. There are also scattered clinics where teens can receive birth control. For many parents, this term conjures up images of teenage sex or pregnancy, which can cause them to ignore its

Teenagers should have access to birth control devices. The most compelling argument against this thesis is the idea that they are not emotionally mature enough to be having sex at all, in that it is a meaningful commitment that should be only taken up by adults who have the ability to consent fully and understand the consequences of their behavior. Additionally, sexual behavior contains a lot of risks of many different natures. There is the emotional risk of engaging in such intimate activity, with concomitant development of feelings that may not be reciprocated or healthy. There is also the physical risk of disease. For heterosexual women, pregnancy is an emotional, physical, and economic strain that could severely derail a promising

One solution to preventing teen pregnancy would be to provide better access to birth control for teenagers. In Jacqueline Sedgwick’s article, “American Adolescents and Emergency Contraceptive Pill Access,” she argues that the American teenage pregnancy and abortion rates are higher than any other nation due to the irregular or improper usage of birth control. Many American teenagers are unaware of how to properly use the contraceptives and mistakenly find themselves in difficult situations, but with more knowledge about birth control, teens will be able to properly protect themselves from unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. According to the article, the federal court order the US Food and Drug Administration to make emergency contraceptive pills available to teens over the age of seventeen without a prescription (Sedgwick). Allowing easy access to birth control will enable teens to be prepared and inhibit them from unintended pregnancies that are likely

Birth control is a frequently debated topic in our society today. Policymakers argue whether birth control methods should be restricted or accessible to women. Public school systems continue to only teach abstinence. All the while, teen pregnancy is still a rampant issue in America. As seen later in this paper, it is proven that birth control decreases teen pregnancy. So why is society still debating over a helpful method of protection and prevention?

“It looks so easy, I want one too.”1 In 2011, Time Magazine published an article, “Teens Answer: Why I had a Baby”. The magazine hired a consultant to interview current and former teenager students in the South Bronx (New York) to get their perspective on why teens chose to have a child. Overall, the responses reflected that at that age teenagers are “impulsive, naive, not very self-reflective and poor at planning.”2 Teen pregnancy is a problem in the US. “Of the nearly 750,000 teen pregnancies in the U.S. each year, 82% are unintended.”3 With this alarming number of teenage girls getting pregnant, all birth control options should available for a teen and not restricted. The reasons for making birth control options available are: Will reduce teen pregnancy; will reduce the number of teenage abortions; and will give the teenager more responsibility. The opposing view believes abstinence is the answer. Making birth control more assessible will help teenagers finish their high school education then get a good job instead of forcing many into a cycle of poverty.

In the article “Abstinence Is the Best Policy in Preventing Teen Pregnancy” posted on the Opposing Viewpoints database, it is argued that teenagers are incapable of assessing and considering the risk of premarital sex and comprehension of the challenges in facing an unwanted pregnancy. The article goes on to say that while they are maturing, teens are drawn more to risky behavior including sexual behavior, and “as those choices get more risky […] guidance and limits from parents that are reinforced by peers, teachers, and other authority figures are critically important”. This article also challenges the results of sex education by stating that it is merely educational and shown to inform rather than change teens

It has been receiving a great deal of public and official attention recently, including expressions of concern from President Clinton (Trad, 1999). However, the most extensive dilemma regarding the issue of adolescent pregnancy is the question of prevention. Preventing teen pregnancy includes such problems as the availability of birth control, sexual education among children and adolescents, and a greater sense of support for pregnant teens. However, before society can begin to successfully prevent pregnancies among teenage girls, the underlying causes and facts about the dilemma must first be exposed

Imagine a woman was raped and later became pregnant. Shouldn 't she have the right to abort the child or should she be forced to deliver? Put yourself in her shoes. Can you imagine the pain she might feel every time she looks at the child? Should she be forced to endure this? Women should be allowed to have abortions under circumstances such as these.

A common debate in the world today involves abortion, the deliberate end of human pregnancy, and whether or not it should be legalized. “Every year in the world there are an estimated 40-50 million abortions. This corresponds to approximately 125,000 abortions per day” (“Abortions Worldwide this Year”). On one side of the argument, people are not disturbed by this grotesque number, and on the other side there are people outraged and simply appalled. Although people attempt to deem abortion acceptable in society because of circumstances like the mother not being able to support the child or in instances of rape, it is still morally wrong.

Primary Audience: My primary audience is the citizens of the U.S.; this includes tax payers, parents, state officials, education officials and teen moms. In the U.S. we have several teens that are experiencing unprotected sex, without any knowledge of pregnancy prevention or sex education. When teen girls become pregnant, this also affects the parents. This is a huge responsibility and burden for all involved parties. Health benefits are needed for both the teen mom and the unborn child.

Abortion is a deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. There are series of legal, moral and ethical issues which may arise about abortion. Most arguments about abortion are often focused on political insinuations and the legal aspect of such actions. Some frequently asked questions’ regarding the issue is if the practice should be outlawed and regarded as murder or should women have the right to practice it. For example, prior to becoming pregnant, some women feel that they would be able to choose the abortion option without trouble. However, even with reasons why having an abortion would be the best option, some women feel that this decision would not be right for them. On the other hand, some women have a strong belief that abortion is unethical prior to becoming pregnant.

Abortion has become a common argument topic in America; numerous individuals consider themselves pro-life and others pro-choice. Those who consider themselves pro-life oppose abortion, while those who are pro-choice advocate for abortion to be legalized. I believe that abortion should be illegal and that life should be recognized upon conception.

The United States’ of America boasts the highest teen birth rate of any industrialized nation. The teen birthrate in the U.S. is so high that it almost doubles the United Kingdom’s birth rate and is fifteen times greater than the birth rate of Japan (Garth 115). Lakita Garth is a highly reputed speaker on many different issues and is one of the leading abstinence advocates in the United States. Garth explains how on her many visits with pregnant teenagers, she learned that none of the teens blamed their pregnancy on their lack of information of contraception. Instead, the girls Garth met with lamented that they were never taught how to live an abstinent lifestyle (115). Only fourteen percent of adolescents are not using contraceptives because of a lack of knowledge or a lack of access to birth control (Garth 115). For

Teen Pregnancy has been a controversial topic long since the 1960’s. Some may believe it’s a sin against God because you’re pregnant out of wedlock, while others may believe you put yourself in the situation so now you can deal with the consequences. The decrease in teen pregnancies, causes the belief, that the access to contraceptives is lowering teen pregnancy rates. People and places are trying to lower the rate of teen pregnancy, which include the history, causes, effects, prevention and the current situation.

Many teenagers are now becoming parents these days. In fact, from the ages of 15-19, there were 249,078 babies born in the United States. (1) Many of these unwanted pregnancies can be prevented with the help sexual education. Yes, in some schools there is sexual education. But, if it was in every school many of these could have possibly been prevented. At the school I attend, sexual education is not offered. We are faced with several unwanted pregnancies, and with sexual education, I think these could be prevented.