Why Abortion Should Be Legal?

Imari Linton

Prof. Beers

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Should Abortion Be Legal

        Abortion is one of the top controversial subjects this year. The abortion law can be easily divided up into 5 categories which consist of legal precedence, birth control issues, human rights, religion and when life begins. Based on opinions and moral claims, there is a very wide variety of views supporting either more or less restrictions on abortion laws. There are numerous groups and organizations that target all of these different types of opinions. Although all of them are very vocal, especially with the media coming up with catchy slogans such as #prochoice, the issue still focuses on a basic question; Should there be more or less laws governing abortion? In my opinion, I believe abortion should be legal based off certain criteria. I think that it rules out a lot of unsafe practices, gives women the right to make their own choices about their body, prevents child neglect and abuse, prevents poverty, and saves lives.

        Keeping abortion legal rules out a lot of possible unsafe abortion practices. Back in history, women have been trying have abortions performed whether they were illegal or not. According to Obo Abortion Contributors, during the 1950’s and 1960’s the number of illegal abortions in the united states ranged from 200,000- 1.2 million a year. About 5,000 of those women died annually as a direct result of unsafe abortions.

Today, abortion is one of the most commonly performed clinical procedures. The death rate is extremely low, only at .6 per 100,000 procedures. Legalization of abortion allows women to obtain a timely abortion, therefore reducing the risk of complication. In 1970, one in four abortions occurred at or after 13 weeks of gestation. In 2009, almost 92% of abortions were performed during the 1st trimester. Very few (7 percent) abortions were performed at 14-20 weeks’ gestation and even fewer (1.3 percent) were performed greater than 21 weeks’ gestation. What defines an unsafe abortion is an individual lacking the necessary skill to perform the procedure or doing so in an environment named unfit and does not meet minimal health standards. Unsafe abortions are way more common in countries where its illegal. Almost half of all abortions worldwide are unsafe and nearly all are performed in developing countries.

        Making abortion illegal violates a women’s rights to her own body. Restricting women’s right to abortion denies women the access to a procedure that may be necessary for their enjoyment and their right to health. Only that women herself has to deal with the physical and emotional consequences of an unplanned pregnancy. Some women go through maternal related injuries like hemorrhage and obstructed labor. Denying women access to medical services that allow them to control their fertility or terminate a dangerous pregnancy means refusing to provide health care that only women need. Women are consequently exposed to health risks that men are not. A women’s right to health entitles them to a safe abortion.

Unsafe abortion can have a devastating effect on a women’s health. Women may experience long-term disabilities, uterine perforation, chronic pelvic pain, and pelvic inflammatory disease. The right to health does not guarantee perfect health for all women, however it’s required for the government to provide health care and to work toward creating conditions contributive to the enjoyment of good health. This right to health can be contributed to require governments to take the necessary measures to ensure that women are not being disclosed to the risks of unsafe abortion. Such measures include removing any and all legal restrictions on abortion and assuring access to high-quality abortion services.

        Not only does making abortion illegal not give women the right to their own bodies, but it can also lead to child abuse. When the parents are forced to have a baby that was unwanted, it can cause the parents to lash out on the child. These conclusions have been supported by testimonies from different women and men who have reported a direct correlation between their unresolved post-abortion feelings and the emotional or physical abuse of their live born children. One women explained her feeling as a deep anger whenever her newborn cried. She said, “I did not understand why her crying would make me so angry. She was the most beautiful baby, and had such a placid personality. What I didn’t realize then was that I hated my daughter for being able to do all these things that my lost [aborted] baby would never be able to do.” The reasons for child abuse are complex. But clearly, if abortion associates the feeling of depression, self-hatred, anxiety and anger among mothers and fathers, including patterns of substance abuse, their children will pay a horrible price. In some cases, abortion can lead to emotional breakdowns along with tragic results. For example, Renee Nicely of New Jersey experienced a psychotic episode the day after her abortion which resulted in the beating death of her 3-year-old son, Shawn. She told the court that she “knew that abortion was wrong” and “I should be punished for the abortion.” The psychiatrist who was the prosecution’s expert witness testified that the killing was clearly related to her psychological reaction to her abortion. Unfortunately, the victim of self-hatred was her own son Shawn. Similarly, just one week after a women named Fleming’s second abortion, she became depressed and distraught. Donna “heard voices” in her head and tried to kill herself and her two sons by jumping off a bridge in Long Beach, California. Donna and her five-year old son were rescued; her two-year-old died. Subsequently, Donna claimed she tried to kill herself and her other children in order to “reunite her family.” For women who have been traumatized by abortion, acts of child abuse are a natural symbol for unresolved abortion issues. A women named Rhonda was drowned with guilt and shame for aborted five children. She believed that God wanted her make up for what she had done by giving love to children who needed someone to care for them. She tried to meet this obligation by starting a full-time day care career in her home. As the day would go on, she would find herself getting agitated with the 8 kids she was taking care of. Sometimes she would pick the toddlers up and shake them or hitting them out of rage. After these violent incidents she’d then curl herself up in a corner and cry because she thought she was a horrible person. By placing herself in a stressful situation with these toddlers, she began to realize that her repeated loss of control with the children confirmed her feelings of self-hatred and disgust.