Herrmann 1

Allie Herrmann

ENG 1201

Prof. C

24 March 2022

Should abortion remain legalized?

For over a century people have been debating about the morality of abortion.

Should the person carrying the baby choose whether or not to terminate their

pregnancy? Or does that cross a moral line that should be prohibited by the law? This

debate has become a hot topic over the last 50 years, and people feel strongly about

their opinions on both sides. As people continue to fight, lawmakers in places like the

United States are instituting numerous antiabortion laws. Abortions are a safe way for

people to terminate a pregancy if it best fits their physical, mental, and finicial well

being, which is why they should remain legalized.

As previously mentioned, the abortion debate is certainly not a new one.

One of the biggest moments in history for abortion was the Roe v. Wade court case. It

took place in 1973 when Jane Roe- a Texas women in her early 20’s- wanted to get an

abortion, as she wasn’t finicially prepared to care for another child. At the time, Texas

only allowed abortions when the woman’s life was at stake. The Supreme Court ruled

that pregnant women would have the liberty to choose to have an abortion without too

many governemnt restrictions. This decision overturned many laws in place restricting

abortions at the time, both on a federal and state level. It was after Roe v. Wade was

decided that the United States started hearing more prominent antiabortion stances
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from evangelical groups. For most of the United States history abortion had been illegal

(NPR, 2019 ). Turning to more recent history, in 2019, 10 U.S. states enacted

antiabortion laws. While Roe v Wade has not been officially overturned, the U.S. The

Supreme Court hasn’t taken any action to block these antiabortion laws.

Of course no action invites just as much protest as an action would, so the

Supreme Courts message has inspired more pro-choice protesting. While abortion can

seem like a black and white issue, many people fall into the gray areas in the debate.

The two biggest sides on the debate are known as “Pro-choice” which consists of the

people who support the right for a person to choose whether or not to terminate their

pregnancy. “Pro-life” on the other hand consists of the people who support the right of

the unborn fetus to be born despite what the carrier wants.

Those who take the pro-life stance on the debate argue that abortions are

unethical because they cause pain to the fetus. The evidence being that premature

babies that are born around 23-24 weeks experience extreme amounts of pain when

undergoing surgical procedures (Johnson, 2014). They argue that a fetus still in the

womb around the same stage in development that gets aborted using dilation and

evacuation- a procedure that removes the limbs of the fetus- would cause the fetus to

feel that extreme pain just as the babies that have been born, making the abortion

unethical. Although this stance is specific to late term abortions it answers why people

question the morality of an abortion. The procedure itself being described as ripping the

arms and legs of the fetus off, while necessary, is a disturbing thought.

Many on the other side of this point will argue that the procedure should be legal.

Out of 1.4 million abortions perfomed in 1996 only 650 of them used the dilation and
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evacuation procedure, that’s .046% (Deters, 2005). They argue that the procedure is

necessary for a specific time in a woman’s pregnancy and banning it would restrict her

right to her choice. The dilation and evacuation method is also commonly used after a

miscarrige. At the end of the day this pro-choice stance argues that all abortions

terminate a fetus and should be able to be conducted through whichever prcedure a

medical professional recommends.

After Roe v. Wade established that abortions would be legal, there was backlash

accompanied by many evangelical groups. Many people of faith believe abortions are

wrong because it says so in the Bible, and/or because they believe abortions are the

murder of an innocent child crafted by God. While many pro-life activists may be

religious because of those reasons, there are also numerous religious pro-choice

supporters. Jon O'Brien- leader of “Catholics for Choice”- says, "We are pro-choice

because of our faith, not despite it” (Miller, 2016). It is belived by many antiabortion

activists that religious people need to be against abortion for moral reasons. However,

Catholics have proved this to not be necessary. Many Catholics in line with their faith do

not view abortion as murder, and more aligned to contraception. While not all Catholics

agree, it is evident there is a wide range of opinions, and they’re definitely not all pro-

life. Their support is important to the pro-choice movent as they are proving the religious

narrative to not be all for one.

Pro-life advocates like to argue that many people view abortion as a form of birth

control. With statistics saying that there are about 1.5 million abortions taking place

every year it makes people wonder, why so many? On the other side of this debate pro-

choice advocates say that we need to better educate and support those who can get
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pregnant in order to prevent the pregnacies in the first place. The author shared a

personal story of her friend who was thrown a bag of condoms at the abortion clinic and

told to “be more careful next time.” It is also evident that many women become pregnant

against their will, 1 out of 6 American women are the victim of attempted or completed

rape (Mathewes-Green, 2001). They argue many of these women are not being

irresponsible, and we cannot punish them by taking away their choice to terminate their

pregnancy after a traumatic event.

Considering statistics it’s important to remember that unfortunately some of the

rape cases are those of children, and insecst. Not only in America, but in other countries

such as Paraguay. On average 2 girls aged 10-14 give birth everyday in Paraguay

(Guardian News & Media, 2021). The country has strict abortion laws, and only grants

one in a rare case the mother’s life is in danger. Pro-choice advocates argue the danger

in instituting laws like that, because of the physical and emotional toll young girls face

when being forced to give birth. Young girls who are unable to give their consent. They

are raped, abused, and forced to carry out their pregnancies in Paraguay.

Due to abortion being so controversial many people suggest that abortion shoud

be allowed, but only under certain circumstances such as: insecst, rape, the mother

being a child, or the mother’s life being in danger. However, those opposing the

antiabortion laws claim that the laws will never get ride of abortions, only make them

unsafe. They argue that when you leave women without a choice, no matter their

situation, they will often go to desperate, and unsafe measures to get an abortion.

Unsafe abortions are responsible for the deaths of 78,000 women every year (Watkins,

2005). If pro-life advocates care so much about life, it leaves pro-choice people to
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question what they’re doing for the lives of these women. Many will make the argument

that these people are only “pro-birth” and don’t truly care for the quality of life when it

comes to the parent or the child after it’s born.

On the pro-life side of things one of their biggest arguements is that abortion is

murder, and is always wrong. They claim that in cases of rape for example there is no

need to punish anyone besides the criminal, and that getting an abortion only

retraumatizes the victim. Women, including sexual assalt victims, say that years of

phycological, physical, and emotional difficulties came after getting an abortion

(Thompson, 2015). With these kinds of reports the pro-life movement wants to end

abortions no only for the sake of what they believe is preventing murder, but also for the

mental health of women. People can’t possibly know how getting an abortion might

effect them, so this side argues that the law must make the best decsion for those

seeking an abortion.

Another point made by the pro-choice side is that comprehensve sex education

is the best way to prevent teen pregnancies. Many times teenagers are only taught

about abstinence, which is simply not participating in sexual acts, however this can

actually harm them. A study found that when students were taught comprehensive sex

education, 40% of those programs achieved the delaying the initiation of sexual

intercourse, reducing the number of sexual partners, and increasing condom or

contraceptive use (Malone, Rodriguez, 2013). Pro-life advocates might want the law

making to shift from banning abortions, to preventing pregnancies. Requiring the

teaching of safe sex programs would prevent unwanted pregnancies from happening in

the first place, which in turn would reduce the number of abortions. Because, in reality
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nobody wants to have to get an abortion so stopping unwanted pregnancies before they

happen should be ideal for both sides.

On the other hand people claim that abstinence is the best method to be taught

because of the emotional trauma having sex before marriage can cause. A study

showed that one in eight teens who embarked in sexual behavior suffer from things like

depression. Not to mention that the suicide rates have risen for adolescents, paralleling

the rise in STIs within this population (Zeiler, 2013). With these kinds of statistics it does

seem like teaching kids to not have sex at all might be better in the long run for them.

However, this might leave room for a similar opposition to making abortions illegal.

Teenagers will find ways to have sex whether they are taught about abstinece or safe

sex methods. When it comes down to it if teens will be having sex reguardless,

everyone would agree that it should be safely. This way pregnancies can still be

prevented, and less abortions have to happen.

The pro-life movement considers abortion to be murder. This stance can be

taken depending on someone’s opinion on when life starts. For many pro-life advocates,

life begins at conception, meaning when an egg gets fertilized by sperm. By ending that

life with an abortion you are murdering. However, many pro-choice advocates say that

the “life” in the womb isn’t viable. Pro-lifers fire back saying that the excuse doesn’t work

because if the life wasn’t viable then there would be no reason to have an abortion in

the first place (Torr, 2006).

Another pro-choice take again questions how much the pro-life side cares about

life. The fallacy in the antiabortion argument comes from the right to life granted to a

fetus who should not have it. Being a part of a species doesn’t give something the right
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to life, and neither does having self awareness. For example, how can someone say a

fetus deserves greater protection of life than a cow? A fetus’s mental capacity is even

less than a cow's. However, the pro-life advocates that protest around abortion clinics

are never seen protesting outside of a slughter house (Singer, 2015). This point

exposes some of the hypocrisy that lies on the other side of this debate. It makes

people question if it’s okay to fight for the life of an unborn fetus and then go eat a

hamburger?

Pro-Life actvists standing outside a Planned Parenthood to protest abortions

(Coughlin, 2017).

Going off of that point, in a similar situation people argue that those who are pro-

life should also oppose the death penalty. Of course a major difference pro-lifers may
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point out is that a criminal is guilty, while a fetus is innocent, so that’s why it’s okay to kill

one and not the other. However, both end in a life being lost so an authentic “pro-life”

movement should oppose them both (Hauf, 2019). Especially considering that some

prisoners on death row are wrongly convicted and can die innocent from the death

penalty. An innocent life being lost again sounds like something the pro-life movement

should be protesting. This has led many pro-choice activists to believe that the pro-life

movement is less about saving babies and more about controlling women.

The pro-life movemnet wants the government to step in and make abortions

illegal. Lawmakers in countries like Texas have already made these kinds of laws.

However, people who don’t want the government involved argue that one of the human

rights is freedom in decision making over private matters (Watkins, 2005). What a

woman decides to do about her body shouldn't be part of the government's business, if

people are promised privacy in personal affairs they should be granted it.

In conclusion it is more than evident that this debate is a controversial one. With

the differing opinions being so stark as one person can shout murder while another

pleads healthcare. However, just because one person may see something as wrong

doesn’t mean they have the jurisdiction to tell someone else they can’t do it. When it

comes to the safety and well being of the person who’s pregnant, it should be their legal

decision to either continue or end their pregnancy.

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Works Cited

Center for Reproductive Rights. "Abortion Is a Woman's Right." The Ethics of Abortion,

edited by Christine Watkins, Greenhaven Press, 2005. At Issue. Gale In Context:

Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010012215/OVIC?

u=leba19371&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=5ca33683. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.

Coughlin, Kevin. “Kevin Coughlin.” Morristown Green ICal, 8 Mar. 2017,

https://morristowngreen.com/2017/02/11/demonstrators-in-morristown-call-for-

defunding-of-planned-parenthood/.

Deters, Rob. "Partial Birth Abortions Do Not Harm Women." Problems with Death,

edited by David A. Becker, Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale

In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010160236/OVIC?

u=leba19371&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=9d5c56a2. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.

Originally published as "Women Should Have Right to Choose," Badger Herald,

30 Oct. 2003.

Dougherty, Jon. "Life Begins at Conception." Abortion, edited by James D. Torr,

Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale In Context: Opposing

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Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010102277/OVIC?

u=leba19371&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=0eb17418. Accessed 27 Mar. 2022.

Originally published in WorldNetDaily, 6 Feb. 2001.

Hauf, Patrick. "Pro-Life Activists Should Oppose the Death Penalty." Gale Opposing

Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2022. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/XFPQYB370836779/OVIC?u=leba19371&sid=bookmark-

OVIC&xid=fad0a9ff. Accessed 27 Mar. 2022. Originally published as "Someone

tell Alabama that pro-life means opposing the death penalty," Washington

Examiner, 22 May 2019.

"Listeners Ask About The History Of U.S. Abortion Laws." Morning Edition, 5

June 2019. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

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OVIC&xid=d69eaff0. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.

Malone, Patrick, and Monica Rodriguez. "Teen Sex Education Should Emphasize

Protection and Safety." Teens at Risk, edited by Stephen P. Thompson,

Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale In Context: Opposing

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u=leba19371&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=73f9a5e0. Accessed 27 Mar. 2022.

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Originally published as "Comprehensive Sex Education vs. Abstinence-Only-

Until-Marriage Programs," Human Rights Magazine, vol. 38, no. 2, spring 2011.

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