The Real Facts About Abortions

Abortion Abortion is quite a controversial issue in today’s government. Many of us refrain from even getting into a discussion over abortion, because it is such a sensitive topic. It is very unfortunate that so many women around the world have to make decisions involving abortion, period. “One in three women will have at least one abortion by the time she is 45, and these run the gamut of ages, races, backgrounds and beliefs. ” (Welch) In one’s eye abortion is simply immoral and unacceptable, while in another it is a typical procedure. Often, pro-abortionists are portrayed “… s merciful and anti-abortionists as close-minded” (Olasky). As an outsider I interpret each group as one extreme to the other, and the purpose of this paper is to inform myself and the reader of both, pro-life and pro-choice sides and perspectives of abortion in the U. S. Somebody that claims to be in favor of the Pro-Life policy is opposed to wrongful death and in favor of life-enhancing actions. The main argument of a pro-lifer is religious based beliefs. They argue that an abortion is immoral because, “… all life was created by God and belongs to Him, no one has the right to murder another human being. (Cain) A person in favor of Pro-Life policy believes that having an abortion is a sin, but so is sex before marriage and half of the woman getting pregnant nowadays are not even out of high school. Does that mean that just because they decided to attempt to raise a baby at 15 that they have been forgiven for their original sin? No, either way they will be judged by those in favor of what is acceptable according to their religion. They even disagree on early abortions because they claim “ life begins at conception… ” (Lowen). Anti-choice people “… ant to outlaw abortion, regardless of the woman’s situation” (The Problem). They don’t see any exception for committing murder. Anti- Abortionists often compare abortions to Hitler and the concentration camps, “One out of every three children conceived in America since 1972 has died a brutal death through abortion—more than six times the number of Jews that Adolf Hitler put to death in his Nazi concentration camps. ” (Roe) The cost of abortion is another issue for pro-lifer’s, they think that the government shouldn’t have to spend so much money to undermine future growth. “The inistry of health claimed that the 45,000 women treated in public hospitals for incomplete abortions each year is costing the state R19 million” (Cain). They believe tax dollars should not be used to provide women with this type of birth control, it is unfair to those who do not support the pro-choice policy and it is unacceptable. Being Pro-Choice means being in favor of safe and legal abortions, but also in reducing the need for abortions. Their religious beliefs are not a base for their opinions on abortion. Those who are in favor of the Pro-Choice policy argue that person-hood at conception is “… ot a provable biological fact,” it is simply a religious belief (Choice Matters). Pro-choice supporters give women the benefit of the doubt allow for a logical explanation for an abortion. Abortions are medically necessary for some women, “Teen girls, whose bodies are not yet ready for childbirth, are five times more likely to die” (Health). In a case like that would it be fair to pass judgment? The same goes for woman who are raped. Pro-choice people argue that instead of trying to prohibit abortion altogether, we should try alternate methods like; safe, affordable contraceptives and comprehensive sex education. Laws against abortion do not stop abortion; they simply make it less safe… the only thing that changes is more women die” (Health). Outlawing it would lead women to turn to unsafe abortions, not conducted in clinics. For some families abortion “… helps parents limit their families to number of children they want and can afford, both financially and emotionally” (Choice Matters). Taking away the civil rights of women and/or families by making it illegal to have abortions, will only lead to more poverty in the United States and lead to increasing government spending on welfare.

According to the First Amendment, we all have our right to privacy. I am a woman myself and I honestly wouldn’t appreciate strangers making decisions for me. What happens in the privacy of one woman’s body doesn’t belong out in the open for everyone else to critique. I am fully aware that if a woman feels she is mature enough to have sexual intercourse, then she should be prepared to face the possible consequences, but this is the real world and we are only human. Mistakes do happen. I do not support women getting abortions just because they are promiscuous and lazy.

Of course the abstinence policy is the best policy, but as long as we are living on planet Earth, that just won’t cut it. Just like Hillary Clinton, I believe that, “… whatever side you’re on in the pro-choice vs. pro-life debate,… we can all agree on a third principle: we would be better off with fewer of them” (Sullivan). I personally think that providing all sexually active women with contraceptives is the smartest thing to do in order to decrease high rates of abortion. In the United states, “… 74% say having a baby would interfere with work, school, or other responsibilities” (United States).

Some women may have to go through with an abortion simply because she has severe health risks that may possibly kill her if she went into labor. She may want a child just as bad as many other women except her body cant support a pregnancy. Or, if a women is raped she shouldn’t have to relive the agony of such an event every single day for 9 months. What if she didn’t even want kids? Just because she got pregnant from a rapist, doesn’t mean she has to raise his child. Some “… people say an aborted child might have grown up to be President.

There’s a better chance he would have grown up to be the one who shot the President” (Olasky). It would all really depend on the mother of that child, if she kept the kid and ended up to resent him/her then, that would most likely effect the child in a negative manner; it would make that child have a negative outlook on life. He/she would hate everything and everyone. In that situation in my eyes, the mother would be doing the kid and herself a favor. I’m not saying I would be the one to have an abortion, because in the end I most likely wouldn’t have the heart to get rid of something that I partially created.

I would think, what if he/she is the only chance I have at ever being a mother? What if I only had one shot and I blew it? On the other hand, I would recap on all the things I could potentially loose out on because I decided to have a child that I wasn’t capable of raising yet. At the end of the day, deciding to abort a baby depends on the situation a women may be in at that point of her life; it doesn’t depend on all of the outsiders who think they have the right to decide for her. Every women has a life and has a choice, and the reasoning behind her decision is completely personal.

After conducting all of my research, I noticed that there are strong points on each side of abortion. No matter what position a person takes on this issue, there will always be others critiquing it. I think it is important to accept some woman’s reasons for abortion, but at the same time support the fight on lowering the needs for abortion. We need to educate women about their choices and consequences. Birth control methods need to be expressed and easily obtained. Until the Pro-Choice v. Pro-Life fight gets settled, the United States will only get more and more divided as a nation.