The Controversy Over Abortion Essay, Research Paper

During the past quarter century, abortion has joined race and war

as one of the most debatable subjects of controversy in the United

States. It discusses human interaction where ethics, emotions and law

are combined. Abortion poses a moral, social and medical dilemmas

that focus many individuals to create an emotional and violent

atmosphere.

There are many points of view toward abortion but the only two

fine distinctions are “pro-choice” and “pro-life”. A pro-choice

person would feel that the decision to abort a pregnancy is that of

the mothers and the state should have no right to interfere. A pro-

life person would hold that from the moment of conception, that the

embryo or fetus is alive. This life imposes on us a moral obligation

to preserve it and that abortion is the same as murder. In the United

States about 1.6 million pregnancies end in abortion. Women with

incomes under eleven thousand are over three times more likely to

have an abortion, than women with incomes above twenty-five thousand.

Unmarried women are four to five times more likely to abort than

married. In the past years the abortion rate has doubled among

18 and 19 year olds. Recently the U.S. rate has dropped 6 percent

overall but the rate of abortion among girls younger than 15 has

jumped up to18 percent and the rate among minorities climbed from 186

per 1,000 to 189 per 1,000.

The most popular procedure involved in abortions is the vacuum

aspiration, which is done during the first trimester (three months or

less since the woman has become pregnant). A tube is simply inserted

through the cervix and the contents of the uterus are vacuumed out.

The most commonly used type of second trimester abortion is called

dilation and evacuation. At this point the fetus has bones, bulk and

can is able to move, the second trimester abortions are not as

simple.

When as much of the fetus and placenta are vacuumed out then the

tweezers are used to remove the larger parts. The beginning of the

fifth month abortion is the serious and actually induced as

childbirth. That is, the mother is given substances, which puts her

into labor and delivers the fetus, as she would do with a full-term

baby.

About 40 percent of Americans believe that abortion should remain

legal and 40 percent believe it should be banned except when the

pregnancy threatens the life of the mother or the result of rape or

incest. 15 percent believe it should be illegal in all cases.

Although abortion is regarded as a woman’s right, it should be banned

with exceptions because its considered murder has many psychological

side effects. Young teens say that when they see a baby it reminds

them of their own that they could have had.

Abortion is a woman’s own right and choice. In 1973 the Roe v.

Wade decision proved this by recognizing abortion as a fundamental

constitutional right and made it legal in all states. The law now

permits abortion at the request of the women without any restrictions

in the first trimester and some restrictions in the second trimester

to protect the women’s health. The National Abortion Right Act League

argues that without legal abortion women would be denied their

constitutional right of privacy and liberty. The women’s right to her

own body subordinates those of the fetus and the U.S. Supreme Court

in Roe v. Wade argued that the women’s “right to privacy” overruled

the fetus’s right to life. If abortion were illegal it would force

poor women to bear and raise children they can’t afford to bring up.

It would force young women to raise children when they are still

children themselves and would cause many deformities when incest is

in involved.

There would be a number of unsafe abortions in back allies. It

would also force women to give up their dreams and stay home to bring

up babies. Worst of all, it would condemn victims of incest to carry

and nurture the offspring of their rapist. Abortion is necessary for

women to have control over their own bodies and life. One activist

said, “If I hadn’t had that abortion my life would have been a

disaster. I wouldn’t have made it to medical school. I was married at

that point to a very ill man and it would have been terrible to have

to have my baby. People who need abortions are in some kind of

turmoil and it’s really a life-saving thing.” Anonymous “I am glad I

had my abortion because it gave me another chance to relive my life

and my dreams. It also gave me another chance of my life and gave me

back part of the pride that a person stole.”

To ignore the rights of others is selfish. Women must have the

right to control the functions of their own bodies. Sammy Garcia

told the council that the ordinance would have done little

good. “Young women need the freedom to make choices for their

reproductive life when their family can’t guarantee them parental

support.” Women should not be forced to have babies they don’t want.

They must have the right to decide what happens to them and have a

safe and legal way of doing so. Women are in control of their own

bodies and their lives. Legislators have no right to interfere with

their own choices. The practical assertion that since pregnancy

involves a woman’s body, the choice of continuing that pregnancy must

be hers alone.

Although abortion is considered murder by half of all Americans,

Pro-lifers believe that human life begins at the moment of

conception. When the merge of the egg and sperm is complete, they are

fertilized and known as the “zygote”. The zygote contains a full set

of 46 chromosomes, which is required to create a human life.

Scientists identify that at the moment of fertilization the ovum

takes on an entirely different destiny, life. About 15,000 genes from

the spermand ovum form a unique combination. This is nothing less

than a new human life at its earlier stage of life. In the United

States many infants will not make it to puberty, old age or even

their second birthday. Just because of their shortened life, it

doesn’t mean that it never existed.

Dr. Nate Anderson stopped performing abortions after becoming

aware of the horrors that he observed. “A woman has the right to go

to bed with who she wants, but she can not choose death for her

child. It’s a direct violation of human rights.” Anthony Simpson has

a photo of an aborted fetus and believes that abortion is nothing but

a ruthless murder. In southern Kentucky, Robert Hollis brutally

assaulted his wife in effort to abort the fetus he suspected wasn’t

his. He successfully did so and Carroll believed Hollis set out

intentionally to kill that fetus and that is in fact murder. A

friend, Christina a graduate from high school has recently become

pregnant and decided against abortion. She feels that it’s an

innocent child inside of her.

It has a brain and a heart therefore it also has a right to life.

“Abortion is the unnatural end of pregnancy. That child has a right

to life that is equal to the mother’s right. One cannot kill another

human being just because they wished it wasn’t around. Abortion is

murder of the innocent practiced on a national scale. Overall it has

been proven that the fetus is a real person and it responds to noise,

has feeling and fears. To have an abortion will destroy an innocent

life, which is directly connected to murder. It also kills a

consequence that some one made and now not willing to take it.

Scientific research has successfully shown that abortion causes

many psychological side effects. It leaves the woman with many strong

feelings about her decision. She may feel sadness, wishing things

could have been different and grief for a lost life. Guilt arises

because she knows a fetus represents an independent life.

Anonymous “I feel that god will punish me when I want a baby he won’t

give me one, because it killed my first one.” Anger builds up

towards other people having to do with their decision. Sometimes the

mother may feel that she has in fact been abandoned. Most of the

mothers feel ashamed and embarrassed about their actions. People

close to the mother may be angry with her for ending her pregnancy

and make it difficult for her to deal with. Anonymous’ mother ” At

first I said that I disowned her but because I was embarrassed of her

but then I realized that she needs my help.” Even years after the

abortion, women tend to remember the regretful experience. The

usually wonders of what the baby would have looked like acted like

and when its birthday is.

Thirty-three years old, Angela has had five abortions so far. She

realizes now that they all left emotional scars her that are

unbearable. “It wasn’t just a mass of cell it was children I was

killing.” It may have been a month or a year but feelings do catch up

with the mother. Symptoms such as nightmares, panic attacks and

flashbacks are signs of a recently discovered Post Abortion Syndrome,

also know as PAS. According to a study published by Association for

Interdisciplinary Research in Valves and Social Change, one in five

women studied had diagnosable stress disorders. Also two in five had

sleep disorders and flashbacks following abortion. Abortion is the

right of the mothers and should be up to them if they choose to or

not. No one should help or force the mother to do what they want.

No matter what politicians, the bible and families say, women need to

take control.