Abortion 18 Essay, Research Paper

Twenty-six years ago, on January 22, 1973, there was a controversial case brought to the Supreme Court. That was the day that abortion was legalized. Now, in 1999, we are still faced with the verdict of Roe vs. Wade. Abortion was instituted supposedly to reduce child abuse. People believed that the child was probably not wanted before birth, so why not let it be born at

all?! Sadly, this belief has been proven wrong by recent scientific studies. Evidence proves that ever since abortion was legalized, child abuse has sharply increased. The effects of abortion on women is something that many women have trouble dealing with. Dr. Anne Speckhard, in a 1985 University of Minnesota study, researched the stress on women after an abortion and found

that, 81% of mothers reported preoccupation with their aborted child, 54% had nightmares, 35% had perceived visitations with their child, and 96% felt their abortion had taken a life ( Abortion Consequences 2)

One of the most important questions asked, when it comes to abortions, is, when does life begin? On April 23-24, 1981 a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee came together to hold hearings to decide when life really does begin. A group of internationally and well-known geneticists and biologists came to speak against abortion. They shared their thoughts, surprisingly, without a, profound absence of opposing testimony ( When Does 1). Dr.

Micheline M. Matthews-Roth, a graduate of Harvard medical school , gave a short speech with over twenty embryology and other medical textbooks that supported the fact that life begins at conception. Doctor Hymie Gordon, Chairman, Department of Genetics at the Mayo Clinic said that, by all the criteria of modern molecular biology, life is present from the moment of

conception ( When Does 1). Lastly, Doctor Landrum Shettles, sometimes called the Father of In Vitro Fertilization said, Conception confers life and makes that life is one of a kind ( When Does 1). He also said regarding Roe vs. Wade, To deny a truth [about when lifebegins] should not be made a basis for legalizing abortion ( When Does 1).

On January 22, 1973 abortion was legalized. Because of the Supreme Courts decision, over thirty-five million children have been killed. Many mothers have lost their lives in abortion

clinics, and even more suffer from the physical, spiritual, and emotional scars of killing an innocent life. Even fathers and grandparents suffer from meeting the child they will never know. What people once believed was an act of desperation, is now something much worse. The aborting of one s own child is now considered acceptable and promoted as being all right. It seems as if a blindness has come over our country. This blindness is preventing many good

people from realizing the rights of all human beings, even the ones that are not born yet. Legalized abortion is a violence that has spread through the country like cancer. People of all ages are threatened by it ( Statement 1).

The Catholic Catechism says that abortion is morally wrong. It is a moral evil and this teaching remains unchanged by the Catholic Church. A person should not kill the embryo by abortion and should not cause a new life to die. God has given us the gift of life. It is only He that can take that life away. Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception. Abortion is a hideous crime! Also, any kind of cooperation in an abortion is a grave offense. Any person who has or aides in an abortion can and will be excommunicated from the Catholic Church. Because a person is considered alive at conception, the embryo must be cared for like any other person would be. From the moment of conception, the child has the right to live!

Abortion is an assault on human life and dignity. It takes away a living, breathing human life. People have become desensitized this day and age to the killing of babies that are too weak to even cry for help. Luckily, many people realize that abortion is wrong. Today, many teenagers and young adults are realizing how wrong abortion is. They have grown up with legalized abortion, but they do not believe the lie that abortion is acceptable. Although abortion

will probably never go away, people are fighting constantly to make it at least illegal. Also, women have to be shown that there are other options, such as adoption. People have to be taught at a younger age, how wrong abortion is and what kind of damage it can cause a woman, both physically and emotionally. We, as people, must start to respect all life from the moment of conception until natural death!