Abortion: A National Issue The issue of abortion in the United States has caused an immense amount of controversy and created a public, political, and moral divide over the country. The debate over abortion is still intact today long after the Supreme Court Ruling on Roe v. Wade on January 22, 1973, stating that it is a fundamental right to women. Pro-choice contenders believe that choosing abortion is a right held by the woman, and should not be limited by religious or government authority, stating that it is her body and that she has the right to do whatever satisfies her. Their views, in their eyes, outweigh and suppress any rights claimed for the embryo or fetus, also known as a baby. On the other hand, those who are pro-life, believe that …show more content…
However, I do not judge this woman, because it is not the type of person I am. I do not see specifically how pro-choice contenders do not see the wrong they are committing. Political issues today require, as we have learned in this class, to use a political opinion. My political opinion clashes with my beliefs on the terms that my beliefs are right in the eyes of God and do right by other human beings. My faith is what makes me who I am today, it gives me my passion, my conscience, my respect, and my views concerning any aspect of my life, including what is right and what is …show more content…
Pro-life advocates argue that abortion is murder “Abortion ends a pregnancy by destroying and removing the developing child. That baby’s heart has already begun to beat by the time the mother misses her period and begins to wonder if she might be pregnant (about 31 days after the mother’s last menstrual period or LMP).” (nrlc.org) Pro-life activists make the cunning argument that abortion is equivalent to murder, and murder is not ethical. Therefore, abortion is unethical. These activists claim that abortion promotes promiscuity and therefore call for no toleration of abortion under any circumstances. Pro-life activists find that the majority of women having abortions are not victims of incest or rape. They are having abortions for purely social reasons because of unwanted pregnancies. Approximately 93 percent of women listed “social reasons” as means for getting an abortion not rape, incest, or health reasons. Abortion is wrong for many reasons, but above all, the main reason is murder. With the media’s involvement on this issue, abortion has become one of the most widely talked about and controversial issues in the United
Abortion has been a heated debate in the United States for decades. Since before the ruling on Roe v. Wade, it is clear that this is an issue that is far from ever being decided upon. Between those who are pro-life and those who are pro-choice, scholars from both sides work on disproving the morality of the other side. With the evolution of abortion laws and regulation through the decades, it is difficult to imagine the United States without conflict pertaining to abortion. Despite pro-life and pro-choice agendas, the country is in ever-changing opinion when it comes to abortion.
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
Abortion refers to the termination of a pregnancy in one of two ways. One, the abortion pill (medically induced abortion) or two, surgical abortion depending on how far along the woman is. In 1973, a famous court case, Roe v. Wade legalized abortion across the nation and nullified the Texas state prohibition. The only time the state could intervene was after the first trimester, but during this time the woman had the right to privacy of her own body. After this staggering case, this controversial topic took off at full speed. What the court failed to address was whether human life started at birth, conception or somewhere in between. Splitting the nation into two sides, pro-life and pro-choice, the question if abortion should be legal or not still has not been answered. In defense of this ongoing argument, the pro-choice side is morally and socially correct.
In today’s society one of the most common controversies discussed is the idea of abortion, the idea of abortion has been argued over for several years and more to come. The main argument about abortion is whether or not it should be legalized. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, abortion is “a medical procedure used to end a pregnancy and cause the death of the fetus.” Abortions can be conducted in a specialized clinic, but also the mother herself can riskily execute herself. The two sides that argue over abortion are the pro-life side, and pro-choice side. Pro-life supporters are against abortion, and pro-choice supporters believe it is the woman’s choice in whether or not she decides to carry the fetus. Both sides of the controversy
Abortion divides many Americans, it is one of the many controversial issue in today’s society. There are two major viewpoints that receive the most attention. One point of view is pro-life which is the belief women should not abort a human life. On the other side, is pro-choice which is the belief women may decide whether to carry a baby to full term or abort it. Abortion is known as the act of removing a human embryo or fetus from the uterus of a pregnant woman prior to the completion of the full term of pregnancy. There are very strong opinions for and against this issue, but no one can deny the vast gray area of abortion. Not everyone falls into the specific camp of pro-life or pro-choice. Many Americans find a comfort level in the gray area where there are restrictions, but abortion is not illegal. 1 A person’s stance on the situation is often determined by how they view the fetus: a part of the mother’s body or as a human being.
The choice of her keeping the child would result in her getting kicked out of her home, she’d be finically unable to support the baby, and she would lose her education. With abortion she would not have to deal with these issues, though she would have to deal with the emotional aspect of deciding to terminate the fetus. Pro-choice supports the idea she would learn from her mistake and that ultimately it was her choice to do what she wished with her body. The results of the experience for this girl would be social maturity and evolution, rather than a state of repression.
Those who are pro- life are more likely to be Conservative, and those who are pro-choice are more likely to be Liberal. Many pro-life believers point out that Liberals vouch for equality, yet say that they don’t show equality for the baby when they approve of killing the baby. This hypocrisy helps defend those who see abortion, even in the case of rape, as a negative. “Why should everyone follow the one theory that the fetus is a human at conception if abortion was to be illegal?” is what A Summary of Pro-Choice Arguments asked viewers. Answers included the various laws different countries have on abortion. In the U.S. the baby cannot be killed after birth. In other countries, the fetus cannot be killed after the first trimester (A Summary). Some may argue that if killing a human being after birth is illegal, why is it legal to kill a human being in the
Abortion is an extremely divisive issue in America. People on both sides of the issue are very passionate. People who subscribe to the notion that abortion is murder and should not be legal in most cases or not at all, are called Pro Life. Whereas, those who believe that it is the woman’s right to make decisions about their own bodies, including abortion, without the consent of the government are called Pro Choice. Abortion is such a polarizing issue, that it always comes up during campaign season and in some races people win and lose elections because of their stances on abortion. Abortion is a controversial issue in America.
Hearing the word abortion come from somebody's mouth can either sound like murder or self-rights to a certain person. Abortion is a difficult subject to talk about in today’s society. Supporters and critics of abortion characterize themselves as strictly pro-life or pro-choice, but the subject of abortion is filled with many grey areas. Abortion is not a black and white subject. Today it is a very controversial issue that many people, not just women, have strong opinions about. Whether the people are pro-life for religious reasons or they view it as murder, or if they are pro-choice because they are feminists or just because they believe in women’s rights and choices, there may be some similarities between the two. Many people
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
In “10 Reasons Why Abortion is Evil & Not a “Pro-Choice”, an American Society for Defense of Tradition, Family and Property student (TFP) states that there are many reasons why someone should disagree with the idea of “Pro-Choice.” Pro-choice is generally referred to as someone having the choice whether or not to get an abortion. Abortion is defined as the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy. While the author of this article gave some compelling arguments, I have to disagree with their opinions. After reading multiple statements from male and female doctors, scientists, and politicians, on both sides of this controversial debate, I have gathered a substantial amount of information to back up my pro-choice views. I personally do not have any experience with this issue, but I still feel strongly about it, and here are some of my main points.
Abortion, which according to the Merriam Webster dictionary (n.d.) refers to any action that is taken to prematurely end the life of a growing fetus in its mother’s womb before it is born, is a very controversial topic in our society today. Every day, several women die as a result of lack of access to proper abortion facilities (Kaczor, 2013). It has been estimated that 2% of women within childbearing age i.e. ages 15 to 44 will have an abortion (Medoff, 2013) and the yearly number of abortions worldwide is estimated to be around 46 million ( Kaczor,2015). This statistic is further increased due to the society’s perception of the morality and ethicality of abortion. Pro-life supporters argue that life begins at
Since Roe v. Wade in 1973 the Nation has been divided into two schools of thought. Both sides have convincing arguments that are heard all around. The Pro-Life group believes that abortion is ultimately murder. Even if that human is not born you are killing the potential of a living homo sapien. The Pro-Choice group on the other hand looks at this not as murder but an infringement of our constitutional rights and that we are empowering women to make this a decision about their body and not to be obstructed by the government’s views.(Abortion Procon.org) Maureen Shaw is a feminist, writer, and a mother. She has wrote many articles for websites including, Quartz, The Atlantic, Huffington Post, and many others. Maureen Shaw a writer on social issues has wrote an article on how becoming a mother has “made her even more Pro-Choice.” on the website Rewire. This article describes how the conservatives in the United States and those of conventional thinking have a clouded view on why women have abortions and why they are getting abortions. Shaw’s journey into motherhood has strengthened her view on abortion and on the right-wing political ideologies to judge her motivations.
Abortion is the utmost scandalous concern having no grounds of settlement among two polar sides. The argument is viability and mortality while the uncertainty of obstacles makes it problematic. Abortion is outlined as the “removal of the embryo or fetus from the uterus in order to end a pregnancy” (Dictionary.com). An abortion rate has increased over the years due to the lack of sexual protection. Abortion is encircled by countless questions such as: Does the constitution endorse a right to abortion? Is a developing zygote considered a human? Should there be a law that permits abortion due to incest or rape? The United States Supreme Court Case of Roe vs. Wade in 1973, has made abortion legal in America. However, certain states are fighting to take away abortion rights in protection of the unborn child.
The current conflict between pro-life and pro-choice movements intensified after 1973 when the United States Supreme Court decided that “a woman’s constitutional right to privacy precludes a state from prohibiting her from obtaining an abortion on demand during the first trimester of pregnancy” (Stewart et al. 263). The Supreme Court determined that fetal life was a viable human only after the first six months of pregnancy. From this event, the pro-choice activists have exposed different arguments