Jade Miller
Abortion refers to the voluntary termination of pregnancy, resulting in the death of a fetus or embryo. The issue whether or not a woman should have the right to choose if she would rather have the baby, or abort it has been a global issue for decades, and personally I believe it always will be. There are two main opposing views on this issue, one being that it is wrong and selfish to abort a fetus, and the other expressing that it is a choice, but a right belonging to the woman to decide what she thinks is best. This paper argues that it should be a legal choice whether or not you want to have a child, not only because it’s your body, but also because your life is going to be affected by that baby.
Termination of pregnancy dates back to ancient times. Numerous methods, including the use of sharpened implements were used to abort a baby, with no reassurance of surviving. Herbs were another method, which may sound safe but unfortunately there weren’t many knowns ways to stop the excessive bleeding, so you still had a fair risk of dying. In Canada abortion has been legal for forty-four years now, and surprisingly Rona Ambrose, our women’s minister for Canada, voted to criminalize abortion just recently. 6100 people and counting petitioned to have her resign her seat as minister. At one point in the late 70's early 80's, abortion was illegal. When that happened, women would go into people basements, alleys, and other non-sanitary places to get an abortion. The abortion would be someone beating the mother until she lost it, throwing herself downstairs, and/or inserting a clothes hanger to probe the womb and kill the baby, and other harmful ways. Harmful to the mother as well. In many cases, the mother would die.
There are twenty nine countries who supply legal abortion on demand, others making justifications, such as to save the mother’s life, their physical and mental health, in case of rape or incest, etc. El Salvador and Chile are the only two recorded places that do not support abortion in any circumstances. This goes to show no matter where you are there are always going to be different viewpoints on any issue, and for abortion many believe it’s wrong it it’s just a demand. Personally, I believe no matter what the circumstances, it is your choice. A woman is more than a fetus. Some people argue these days that a fetus is a "person" that is "indistinguishable from the rest of us" and that it deserves rights equal to women's. Fortunately, our society has recognized that each woman must be able to make this decision, based on her own conscience. To impose a law defining a fetus as a "person," granting it rights equal to or superior to a woman's — a thinking, feeling, conscious human being — is arrogant and absurd. It only serves to diminish women. “No civilized society permits one human to intentionally harm or take the life of another human without punishment, and abortion is no different,” last time I checked a fetus was not a human. If you’re going to define it as human, are you going to argue a sperm or an egg is a human too? Should we just ban birth control altogether then, since we’d be “killing a human?” Fetuses are incapable of feeling pain when an abortion is performed if it takes place in the first trimester, which brings me to my next point. Nearly all abortions take place in the first trimester, when a fetus is independent of the mother. As it is attached by the placenta and umbilical cord, its health is dependent on her (the mother’s) health, and cannot be regarded as a separate entity as it cannot exist outside her womb. Honestly, I look at a baby as a parasite, it feeds off of you, you are it’s host, and it’s using your nutrients. Then there is the argument that a baby should not come into this world unwanted, and 49% of all pregnancies among American women are unintended. Birthing children is an important lifelong decision that requires responsible consideration, preparation, and planning. What about young teenagers who make the simple mistake of having unprotected sex and getting pregnant? Many people say “if you’re mature enough to have sex, you’re mature enough to have a baby,” but how is a jobless sixteen year old suppose to provide for a child? A survey conducted found that 45.8% of the 1,468 mothers ages 14 to 17 had been kicked out by their parents or guardians for getting pregnant. Raising a child properly is a full-time labor intensive process. The children who are neglected or abused are usually the ones that grow up to be drug addicts, lifelong government aid recipients, and criminals, although it is a controversial point it has to be said. Do we want to subject the child to such misery? Do we want to saddle society with the added burden? Some people say, "What if Abe Lincoln's mom had an abortion?". What if Adolf Hitler's or Osama bin Laden's mom had an abortion? Did you ever think of that? “Those who choose abortions are often minors or young women with insufficient life experience to understand fully what they are doing. Many have lifelong regrets afterwards.” Oh, definitely, because having a baby and dropping out of high school or university is a GREAT thing for our economy. I cannot stress how ignorant this statement is. Just because someone is young doesn’t mean they don’t understand what they’re doing. Also, statistics also show approximately 60% of abortions are obtained by women who have had at least one child, I think they understand what they’re doing.
In conclusion, although abortion is an extremely controversial topic, and to some the cons may outweigh the pros, or the pros may outweigh the cons, but I believe it should be and stay a woman’s right. Again, I stress the fact that a baby unwanted should not have to put up with having a terrible life just because their mother made a mistake, and by having abortion decriminalized it gives them the option to not bring something into this world that they don’t want in the first place. Don’t be sixteen and pregnant, be sixteen and on the honor roll, seriously it’ll feel better much better than pregnancy.
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