Abortion Essay, Research Paper

Abortion

Years ago when a women would get pregnant she would have a baby. Today accidental pregnancies are solved by a method called abortion. With this method the newly formed fetus is basically removed from the mother’s body and destroyed. Although the whole process of having an abortion seems not especially pleasant, it seems to be popular. As a consigned citizen I agree that the mother, and only the mother, should make the decision to have an abortion or to give birth and keep the child. It is the woman’s right to choose.

Many people argue that abortion is plain and simple murder. If a woman is responsible enough to have sex, she needs to be responsible enough to deal with the consequences, no matter what the circumstances may turn out to be.

The fourteenth amendment states, that “no state shall deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without a good reason and a fair trial”(Dye 91). Pro-life supporters use the fact that in the United States constitution it clearly states that no one can kill anyone else without giving a good reason not to have the child. They reason that we must follow all of the other amendments so why do we not fully follow the fourteenth? The unborn baby has a constitutional right to life unless due process of the law is put into effect. But how can due process be in effect when the baby cannot even speak for itself? Basically pro-life supporters argue that the baby cannot be killed because it has the constitutional right to life. The choice to have an abortion should not even come up. If the soon to be mother doesn’t feel that she is not responsible enough to keep it she should give it up for adoption.

Non-abortion advocates also argue that abortion gets used too regularly as a form of birth control pill. They believe that abortions are put into the same category as the “pill” and the Depo-Provera shot, a shot that when injected into the mother’s stomach releases a liquid which will eventually kill the baby”(Microsoft Encarta 201). They also believe that while abortions are legal and so available, people do not see unprotected sex as serious as they should. Women may consent to un-protected sex because if they become pregnant they figure they can always just go get an abortion. Pro-life supporters believe that abortions are a simple way out of a very complicated problem.

However, the illegalization of abortion may bring on many consequences. If someone falls victim of rape and becomes pregnant it is not fair to make them keep the child. The mother would must likely care for the baby, but if it was not wanted in the first place it would not be loved with all that it deserves. It is true that a woman should take responsibility for her actions, but rape is no action of her own. Rape is an act of violence and no women should have to have a baby out of it.

If her decision is to have an abortion then that is her decision and it should be respected. She has to look at her financial situation and should have support from the father to have the child and give that child the best that it deserves. The bottom line is that it is always the woman’s right to choose weather to keep the child or not. She makes that choice on her own and for her own good. What she decides is what’s right for her and only her. If she cannot support the child and give it all it deserves, I believe that she should get an abortion. I believe that a woman should be given the right to end ones life because that life has not been fully developed yet. Some may argue this belief, but understand that not everyone will agree on the issues and we shouldn’t expect them to.

One must then look back at the fourteenth amendment issue. It says, “no person should be deprived of life” (Dye 91). But at this stage is the fetus actually a person? If childbirth takes place in the first three months of life it is impossible for the baby to live. It may have a heartbeat, but none of the limbs or other vital organs are fully in tact. The definition of a fetus is the unborn young of a person or animal, still in the uterus. So the question here is, is the fetus also a person? An alive person could mean someone with a heartbeat or it could mean a human that walks and breathes on its own outside the womb. It is a very hard and controversial question to answer, but I my opinion it is the right of the mother to be to have an abortion. So I believe that an abortion is the right thing to do. Depending on the situation a person is in.

In reality most women are probably smart enough to realize that abortion is a serious matter. Each time an abortion is performed she not only destroys the child, but she is destroying her body. With each abortion her reproductive system begins to break down and she may eventually become sterile. Most women probably understand that to kill another person is not a game and should not be a light matter; there are some ignorant women out there that may use abortions as a form of birth control. Although a few ignorant women should not ruin it for the rest of the people that understand the importance of abortion. Those who have an abortion might not want to have one, but they have to have one anyways because they are not financially stable.

Abortion is a horrible experience for a woman to go through. Emotionally as well as physically, it affects the woman. I cannot see how any woman would want or choose to have this procedure for any other reason than a necessary one. Even though she is asleep the whole time, when she awakes she is in awful pain with a child that is dead. There is no way to reverse the procedure so she has to be one hundred percent sure that she want an abortion before she actually do it. Basically it is an irreversible procedure that no woman in her right mind wants to go through. An abortion can also make her aware of what she thinks and wonder what if. What if I had the child? What if I didn’t get an abortion? What kind of impact would it have made? These are just a few questions that she would be aware of and thinking to yourself if she had an abortion. She will have to live with that choice with the rest of your life.

Although abortions do technically kill the baby(fetus), they must remain a choice. Some women may abuse the privilege, but there are also so many who do not. Ultimately this whole issue comes down to a woman’s choice. She, and only she, should decide what to do with her body. I believe that in some cases an abortion is the only choice a mother has. A simple compromise could please both the pro-choice advocates as well as the pro-life advocates. Abortions could have a monitor on them. Then women cannot abuse them. Each abortion can go on some kind of confidential record so it could be referred to if there was ever any discrepancy about who should and who should not be able to receive an abortion. Bottom line is it is a women’s choice. A women’s right to choose is a very precious right and needs to remain.

Work Cited

1. Thomas R. Dye. (1868) “The Fourteenth Amendment.” Politics In America Third Edition: pg. 91

2. “Abortion.” Microsoft Encarta 96 Encyclopedia. 1999: pg. 201.

3. “Abortion.” Concise Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. 1998: pg. 367.