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abortion ethical and legal issues
Social issues surrounding abortion
issue on reproductive rights
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Every year in January, protestors line the streets of Washington D.C. with signs that boldly exclaim, “Abortion is Murder”, “Right to Life”, and “Pro-Life.” The March for Life protest attracts approximately one quarter of a million people from across the country annually to demonstrate their disdain for abortion. Ever since the Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade in 1973, Americans and lawmakers alike remain in constant dispute over the moral and legal issues of early pregnancy termination.
Those opposed to abortion strongly believe that abortion negates the "Right to Life," and they consider it as morally reprehensible. On the other hand, pro-choice supporters debate that such statements merely embody religious beliefs and values. Pro-abortionists argue that the right to an abortion lies solely with the pregnant woman. Regardless of the endless tirades and diatribes from pro-choice defenders and their attempts to justify early pregnancy termination, I find abortion to be constitutionally illegal, immoral, and downright disgusting as many alternatives to the matter exist.
The Constitution of the United States of America holds a logical case for life. The nature and premise of its body hold the roots to the basic fundamentals of human existence: survive and reproduce.The Fifth Amendment preserves the right to life: “No person shall…be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law” (U.S. Constitution). Those who are pro-choice often debate that the decision for early pregnancy termination falls under the category of women’s rights. The importance of safeguarding the freedom of all United States citizens surfaces multiple times in the Constitution, yet this freedom of choice cannot be so infinite that it has...
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Christian action for reformation and revival .Christian Action, 2003. Web. 27 Apr 2012. http://www.christianaction.org.za/articles/10rguments.htm
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As to any argument, there are two opposing sides when it comes to the matter of abortions. These two opposers usually refer to themselves as “pro-life” and “pro choice”. Pro-life supporters maintain that abortion is wrong and pro-choice believe that it is a woman’s freedom to choose her pregnancy decisions. When it comes to the topic of abortions, most of us will readily agree that it’s a woman’s choice to decide what her reproductive decisions are, i.e. pro-choice. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is in the question of whether or not abortion is a fundamental right granted to women by the Constitution. Whereas some are convinced that a fetus is considered alive at conception, usually citing the word of God, others maintain that
Abortion is a very controversial and sensitive topic in today’s society. Two different sides to this argument is pro-life and pro-choice. Pro-life proponents believe in the right to life for unborn fetuses saying that abortion should be considered murder regardless of how far along in the pregnancy the woman is. Pro-choice advocates people who believe the woman carrying the fetus should be able to make her own decision on aborting the fetus.
Abortions occur for all types of reasons, whether it is because the pregnancy was unplanned, rape-induced, or that it holds a life threatening capacity for the woman herself. Pro-lifers believe once one is conceived, he or she are entitled to a right to live. It does not matter whether or not the pro-lifers are able to prove that a fetus consists of personhood. The life of a potential person should not be able to override the right to one’s body. Judith Thomson presents a though experiment where personhood is granted to a fetus, but how that mere fact still fails to override the woman’s right to her body.
The Roe decision sparked nationwide protest, including a massive letter-writing campaign to the Supreme Court. Many Americans, including many Catholics and evangelical Protestants, believe that abortion is morally equivalent to infanticide. Others believe that life begins upon conception, and thus the right to life of the fetus trumps any other rights. Widespread protest over the decision resulted in the creation of the pro-life Movement, which organized large protest rallies outside the Supreme Court. Pro-life protesters frequently picket abortion clinics, distribute literature and other forms of persuasion to women considering abortion, and have promoted adoption efforts to steer women away from abortion. More extreme variants of the movement have also developed; abortion doctors have been the targets of harassment and even murder by individuals who claim that by taking the life of an abortion doctor they are actually saving the lives of many fetuses. However, anti-abortion activists who advocate or practice violence are consistently denounced by virtually all prominent pro-life groups. Some abortion opponents have claimed that there exists a link between abortion and breast cancer, and Texas has enacted a law requiring literature advancing this theory be distributed to women considering abortion; more credibly, abortion has been linked to persistent guilt feelings and other psychological problems, and to a higher risk of future infertility. Every year on the anniversary of the decision, protesters continue to demonstrate outside the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._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...
The mere word “abortion” is disturbing by definition, from any source. Activists spare no mercy in picketing abortion clinics and taunting women seeking abortions. Protesters carry signs with pictures of aborted babies in late stages in all the graphic detail and will even commit murder to try and stop abortions from taking place. They have bombed abortion clinics, murdered staff and physicians who work at abortion clinics wit...
Abortion is a controversial topic in today’s society as many opinions from different social groups on whether it should be legal or not create the big question: should the government be able to take away a woman’s reproductive right if it is to protect a fetus? In the United States particularly, much of the debate since the 1970s has focused on the Supreme Court case Roe v Wade, in which the court proclaimed women's’ rights to abortion but declared that the states could limit and regulate the procedure. That means that currently, the state of California allows abortions, but many groups against abortion, mostly called “pro-lifers,” still try to fight against it and want it banned. Women have a right to their own body and should
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.
These ideas lead to another issue in considering the lasting effects of the miscarriage. Due to the fact that women may not have had knowledge of their pregnancy or were expected to not have lasting effects their male p...
... Although, the media and the government often try to convince women otherwise, the only person who has a right to your body is yourself, not a baby nor a man. Pro-life advocates use guilt to convince women that a fetus, which is nothing more than a lump of cells, takes precedent and has a greater right to your body than you do. Thompson’s many examples throughout her paper provide strong evidence towards proving her stance and have convinced me to have an elevated understanding of a woman’s right to her body.
Abortion has been a controversial topic in the U.S ever since it became legal in 1973 after the Roe v. Wade case. Abortion is defined as the, “the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy.” Pro-life supporters believe that abortion is unethical and argue that it is the mother’s responsibility to own up to her actions. They also argue that there is always the option of adoption, and that abortion could be very dangerous. I am pro-life and believe that the government doesn’t have the right to decide what a woman can or can’t do with her body.
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.
When deciding if abortion is morally permissible the strongest argument is that fetuses are innocent beings and killing an innocent being is morally impermissible. Any being descending from a human makes it a human, and therefore a fetus is human. As a society we see murder to be immoral especially of an innocent person. Pro-life supporters argue that abortion is equivalent murder because life starts at conception, making a fetus a living person. Supporters believe a fetus has a right to live and wants to live. Abortion goes against the fetus’ right to live and it’s potential to become a member of society. It is the mother’s duty as a parent to provide for the child the best way possible, and that does not involve abortion.
Those who adamantly oppose abortion are regarded as pro-life and those who are supporters of abortion are considered pro-choice by contemporary standards. Even among those who advocate abortion, there are discrepancies in their views such as up until what point in the pregnancy is abortion morally permissible. In my opinion, abortion is morally permissible at any stage in a woman’s pregnancy. This is ethically acceptable because a woman should have the right to control what goes on within her body. Along with this, fetuses are still far from personhood (having the qualities of a human being); therefore, we cannot liken abortion to any variety of murderous activity.
Issues pertaining to abortion have always been contentious in both, the contemporary and traditional human society. Indeed, so emotive has the issue been that it has become one of the topics that have to be and are discussed in politics. Abortion is often defined as the deliberate termination of a pregnancy prior to its attainment of full term and with no intention whatsoever of keeping the fetus. In essence, it always results in the death of the unborn child, which explains why there has been all-ranging controversy. Questions have often been raised about the legality of abortion with different sides making assertions on why it should or should not be legal. While there are varying opinions on the subject, abortion should remain legal in the United States.