The right to choose what happens to YOU is an American right that every person should be allotted. Though the First Amendment clearly states that all Americans have the right to freedom of speech, the topic of abortions continues to be challenged. Abortions poses moral and ethically challenges that many Americans ponder over. The major two sides involved in this is heated issue is “Pro-Life” vs. “Pro-Choice”, pro-life being against and pro-choice supporting abortions. This research paper will examine the many different court cases affecting abortions and the two different arguments What is an Abortion? “An abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or expulsion of a fetus or embryo from the uterus before it is viable”, (Grimes, 2007). An abortion can happen for two different ways, either because of problems during pregnancy or by inducing one because of choice. Abortions usually refer to the induced terminations while terminations related to medical issues are commonly called miscarriages. Obviously the controversy comes into play when dealing with the induced terminations. ”Induced abortion has a long history and has been facilitated by various methods including herbal abortifacients, the use of sharpened tools, physical trauma, and other traditional methods. Contemporary medicine utilizes medications and surgical procedures to induce abortion. The legality, prevalence, cultural status, and religious status of abortion vary substantially around the world. In many parts of the world there is prominent and divisive public controversy over the ethical and legal issues of abortion. Abortion and abortion-related issues feature prominently in the national politics in many nations, often involving the opposing pro-lif... ... middle of paper ... ...stitution and what it means today: Supreme Court decisions of 1973, 1974, and 1975, page 36 (Princeton University Press 1985): "The abortion cases afforded the Supreme Court another opportunity to caress the Ninth Amendment without embracing it." 3. Chrisrs. (March 2011). Belotti vs. Baird. Bullentin; For Law Students.com. Retrieved from http://4lawnotes.com/showthread.php/2613-Bellotti-v.-Baird 4. Graber, Mark A. Rethinking Abortion: Equal Choice, the Constitution and Reproductive Politics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1999. 5. Lowdermilk, Perry, Cashion, and Alden. (2012). Maternity and Women’s Health Care. Elsevier Mosby. St. Louis, Missouri. 6. Potts, Malcolm et al. Abortion, page 347 (1977). 7. “Webster v. Reproductive Health Services." West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 2 Dec. 2011 .
Controversy and arguments that were setbacks in the ongoing battle for women’s rights, specifically the right to an abortion, were put to slight a rest with the landmark verdict of Roe v. Wade. The revolution in reproductive rights caused by Roe v. Wade evolved from a spark in the hearts of women everywhere. When women claimed their rights as humans, that was when the face of women’s equality in all aspects started to change. The case of Roe v. Wade was the official legalization of a woman’s constitutional right to get an abortion in the United States, but the aftermath of any case is what makes or breaks the future laws and regulations. Through all of the restrictions, regulations, and loopholes, Roe v. Wade’s verdict stuck and continued to
Case Briefs. 2013. Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113, 93 S. Ct. 705, 1973. Retrieved on January 10, 2014 from www.lawix.com/cases/roe-wade
The debate of abortion continues to be a controversial problem in society and has been around for many decades. According to Jone Lewis, “In the United States, abortion laws began to appear in the 1820’s, forbidding abortion after the fourth month of pregnancy” (1). This indicates that the abortion controversy has been debated far back into American history. Beginning in the 1900’s, legalized abortion became a major controversy. In 1965, all fifty states in the United States banned abortion; however, that was only the beginning of the controversy that still rages today (Lewis 1). After abortion was officially banned in the United States, groups such as the National Abortion Rights Action League worked hard on a plan to once again legalize abortion in the United States (Lewis 1). It wasn’t until 1970 when the case of Roe (for abortion) v. Wade (against abortion) was brought...
Until the mid 1800s, abortion was unrestricted and unregulated in the United States. The justifications for criminalizing it varied from state to state. One big reason was population control, which addressed fears that the population would be dominated by the children of newly ...
Over the duration of the last century, abortion in the Western hemisphere has become a largely controversial topic that affects every human being. In the United States, at current rates, one in three women will have had an abortion by the time they reach the age of 45. The questions surrounding the laws are of moral, social, and medical dilemmas that rely upon the most fundamental principles of ethics and philosophy. At the center of the argument is the not so clear cut lines dictating what life is, or is not, and where a fetus finds itself amongst its meaning. In an effort to answer the question, lawmakers are establishing public policies dictating what a woman may or may not do with consideration to her reproductive rights. The drawback, however, is that there is no agreement upon when life begins and at which point one crosses the line from unalienable rights to murder.
Three Works Cited Many people believe abortion is only a moral issue, but it is also a constitutional issue. It is a woman's right to choose what she does with her body, and it should not be altered or influenced by anyone else. This right is guaranteed by the ninth amendment, which contains the right to privacy. The ninth amendment states: "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." This right guarantees the right to women, if they so choose, to have an abortion, up to the end of the first trimester.
Milbauer, Barbara. The Law Giveth: Legal Aspects of the Abortion Controversy. Atheneum, New York: 1983.
Baird, Robert M., and Stuart E. Rosenbaum. The Ethics of Abortion: Pro-life vs. Pro-choice. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1989. Print.
The permissibility of abortion has been a crucial topic for debates for many years. People have yet to agree upon a stance on whether abortion is morally just. This country is divided into two groups, believers in a woman’s choice to have an abortion and those who stand for the fetus’s right to live. More commonly these stances are labeled as pro-choice and pro-life. The traditional argument for each side is based upon whether a fetus has a right to life. Complications occur because the qualifications of what gives something a right to life is not agreed upon. The pro-choice argument asserts that only people, not fetuses, have a right to life. The pro-life argument claims that fetuses are human beings and therefore they have a right to life. Philosopher, Judith Jarvis Thomson, rejects this traditional reasoning because the right of the mother is not brought into consideration. Thomson prepares two theses to explain her reasoning for being pro-choice; “A right to life does not entail the right to use your body to stay alive” and “In the majority of cases it is not morally required that you carry a fetus to term.”
Since the early 1970’s abortion has been an important issue to the United States (Tietze 1). The problem begins with whether it is the woman’s choice to keep or terminate her pregnancy or the government’s choice. When this problem happens, a woman loses her right as a person. Most women argue about this issue, but if you look at it, it is the woman’s body, and she should do with it as she pleases. I believe that if a woman, under the right circumstances, should be able to make her own choices in life and not be influenced by family or the government.
Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy before birth. An abortion results in the death of the embryo or fetus and may be either spontaneous or induced. For years, abortion has been an extremely controversial subject. The history of abortion reaches back not just decades, but centuries, and even milleniums. Today, policies regarding legal abortion in the U.S. is being debated everywhere. Many myths and misconceptions confuse this issue. A better understanding of the history of abortion in America can help provide a context for an improved policy in the future.
According to Kenneth W. Krause, “abortion might be the most inscrutable cultural issue of our time.” As a result of this enduring controversy, two opposing groups emerged: those who feel that abortion should be illegalized, the “pro-life” side, and those who believe that even though it may be an undesirable practice, abortion must remain legal, the “pro-choice” side. With research supported by science and ethics, it is evident that abortion is a “necessary evil” (Williams). The legalization of abortion provides protection of a woman’s right to control her own body, supports the prevention of risky, illegal abortions, and ensures that there will always be a choice concerning the immense, life-long responsibility that accompanies bringing a child into the world.
Expecting to completely eliminate abortions from the face of the earth by making them illegal and getting rid of the facilities that provide them is an awfully absurd idea due to the fact that abortions will never cease to exist. Induced abortions have taken place all over the world, and “societies have [been struggling with] the issue of abortion for millennia” (Abortion). Within countries where abortions are essentially illegal, many turn to unsafe abortion methods, usually performed by unskilled practitioners (Chapter 5). These procedures are “often unsanitary… and [result] in the death or mutilation of many women” (Abortion). In areas where these services are not attainable, many women are prompted to seek out specialists to assist them in dangerous and surreptitious methods of abortion such as repeated blows to the stomach and the insertion of bizarre objects in the vagina and cervix. However, abortion-related deaths are usually quite rare in developed countries where the service is both legal and accessible. It is estimated...
“The Rights of Pregnant Women.” NARAL Pro-Choice America. 24 March 2004. <http://www.naral.org/Issues/pregnantwomen/> {unrestricted; internet publication}
Abortions have always been a very controversial topic. Recently, it has even become a very polarizing topic for many Americans. The topic of my research paper will be an in depth discussion of the morality and legality of abortions. The stance I will be taking on this issue is that abortion is morally permissible thus it should be legalized within the United States. In my argument, I will be engaging with Thompson and Marquis’ papers and some other resources.