Table of Contents
Introduction
Whether or not a women should be able to legally have an abortion in the United States is a very controversial issue. Abortion is the deliberate termination of a pregnancy. It became legal in 1973 after the deliberation of the supreme court case ‘Roe vs. Wade’. Before then it was very hard for women to have abortions and many sought out doing it on their own. Since as early as the 13th century abortion has been considered homicide. As far as current laws, abortion is legal throughout the United States but some states make it harder to get one. For example, Mississippi has some of the most restrictive laws which makes it the hardest state to get an abortion. In fact the state itself only has one functional Planned Parenthood clinic.
Other states like California and New Mexico have minimal restrictions. Many women who want to have an abortion have to travel across state lines because of their states’ restrictive laws. For example a woman from Oklahoma had to travel 4 hours to Kansas just to have an abortion. Southern states typically have stricter abortion laws. States like Missouri and Mississippi only have one abortion clinic in the whole state. Other states like have California and New York have a large amount of abortion clinics. Great intro! Informative and detailed, sets reader up to know enough to get into perspectives.
Main Body of Paper
Abortion is currently, and has been throughout the 21st Century, a controversial issue.
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Primarily there have two main sides the argument, pro choice and pro life. Majority of the reasoning on the pro choice is that a woman should be able to have the right to do what she wants with her body. The U.S. Supreme court has also declared the right to abort as a “fundamental right” which is described as a basic human right. Other examples of fundamental rights are privacy and procreation. A lot people also explain that there are many reasons as to why a woman may need to have an abortion. (look at how the sentence before this is worded) Medical complications for the mother and baby may be an issue or a woman may simply not have the means to take care of a child. The pro life side of the argument says that the fetus is a human being and they should have the right of life. A baby should not be terminated simply because a woman is not ready to have a child. To them abortion is considered murder because you are terminating one’s life. Another pro life argument is that human life begins at conception so a baby has the right to live just like any other person. Well done paragraph on two sides of abortion argument
Religious Beliefs on Abortion and its Impact on Abortion Law in the U.S.
Religious perspectives also contribute to whether or not a woman gets an abortion, which in the end would affect her health. In those religions in which a woman is banned from having an abortion, the health effects of having an abortion are more negative.
Christianity
There are multiple views of abortion when it comes to Christianity because there are so many different branches with different beliefs and perspectives. Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox are examples of branches that are opposed to abortion. Orthodox Christians say that abortion is going against the commandment “thou shall not kill.” Catholic Christians say that life is “sacred and inviolable” and abortion goes against that. The Episcopal Church is one branch the does allow women to have the right to abort. However, they do only allow it in specific situations. Rape and incest are examples of when it is allowed because it contributes to the well being of the mother. Another exception is when a fetus has an abnormality.
Buddhism
Buddhists do not have one single view on abortion. Western Buddhists are somewhat okay with abortion while the others are completely against it. They also believe, similar to Islam, that life begins at conception. They believe a fetus should have the same moral rights as an adults.
Islam
As far as religious perspectives, Islam is one religion that does not support abortion. They describe the act of taking someones life as “haram”. Haram is any act that is forbidden or frowned upon by Islamic law. A quote directly from the Qur’an says “ Whoever who has spared the life of a soul, it is as though he has spared the life of all people. Whosoever has killed a soul, it is as though he has murdered all of mankind.” Although abortion isn’t something that is accepted in Islam, the religion does allow the abortion to take place if it is to an effort to save the mother’s life. Unlike pro choice arguments it is not allowed for a fetus to be terminated because the parents feel as though they aren’t ready to take care of a child. A quote from the Qur’an says, “Kill not your offspring for fear of poverty; it is We who provide for them and for you. Surely, killing them is a great sin. Qur’an 17:32.” In conclusion Islam does allow abortion for limited reasons but as an overall it does not support it.
Continue where you have continue notes, and add a piece about whether religion should be determining abortion law in the United States.
Public Perspective
The general population’s view of abortion has been changing in the past couple decades. Since the Roe V. Wade court case more of the American public have been vocal about whether or not they support abortion and to what extent. According to npr.org, older people tend to oppose abortion more than young people. “60% of older respondents said abortion violates their personal beliefs”(npr.org). Political parties are also another group of people who tend to support strong views of the issue. Republicans tend to be pro life while Democrats tend to be pro choice. (The Caucus: Public opinion on abortion). In the aspects of gender, women tend to favor the right to abort although men don’t really voice their opinion as much because they’re often told they have no place to. (news.gallup.com) More Americans as a whole generally believe that abortion should be legal and as time progresses more and people agree with with that statement. Another big point of view is whether or not abortion legality affects women’s health.
Cultural Comparison
India is a country where abortion is illegal. Women there are often forced to perform abortions on their own which is very dangerous. There are 26 countries around the world who ban abortions for no explicit reason. In those countries illegal abortions are more common. Illegal abortions are very unsafe for the mother having them. 8-18% of maternal deaths are due to unsafe abortions. 97% of unsafe abortions are done in underdeveloped countries where it is either illegal or have limited access to safe medical procedures. In places where abortion is not permitted or harshly regulated women often take dangerous efforts to perform the procedure on their own. Women used coat hangers, knitting needles, and sometimes pens to kill and remove the fetus. Other methods included swallowing toxins such as bleach and laundry detergent.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I do not think that making abortion illegal in the United States is morally or ethically right. Considering how dangerous it is for woman to not have access to abortions when they need it, it is best to have the option available even if parts of the general public or religious groups) do not agree with it. The choice of whether or not a woman wants to get an abortion is her own and I do not think anybody else has to the right to dictate that, especially not the government. A personal issue such as this shouldn’t be the business of everybody else. I think making abortion legal can have many positive effects for woman and the community as a whole. Woman will no longer have to worry about traveling across states and potentially permanently harming themselves. A study has also shown that as when abortion is legal the rates of it actually happening goes down.
