One major reason why abortion should remain legal is because of its historical precedence, and how the constitution views this act. Historically, in the state of Texas, it was illegal to have an abortion except in the case of saving the mother?fs life. However, in 1973 a monumental case took place in the Supreme Court, and this trial was known as Roe vs. Wade. Norma Corvey, also known as Jane Roe, was arguing against Dallas?fs District attorney, Henry Wade, that it was against her rights of privacy as a woman not to be able to terminate her pregnancy. This was probably one of the most controversial as well as significant court cases in the 20th century, and the final decision was that the Supreme Court voted in a 7-2 decision which signified to deny a woman the right to abortion was unconstitutional. Justice Harry A. Blackmun was appointed the majority opinion?fs Spokesperson, and he ultimately made his decision on this issue of abortion based on the 14th Amendment?fs due process clause which was said to guarantee this right to privacy (abortion) and it should be upheld. Therefore, advocating for abortion to be illegal would be going against the constitution that our nation was founded on, so with this in mind abortion should still remain legal.
(Goldman, Jeffrey. A case of Privacy: How the U.S. Supreme Court reached the decision that sparked a quarter-century of controversy, CNN.com, Retrieved October 12, 2005, from Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/1998/roe.wade/stories/privacy/)
There is a huge debate on how one can consider abortion as an act of murder when there really isn?ft a clear and concise explanation that determines whether a fetus is a human being. Many Pro-lifers believe that the when an egg becomes a zygote, it is considered to be a living being, but other pro-choice advocates argue that this fetus is just a part of the woman?fs body until it is born. Historically, speaking the Anglo-Saxon law has never officially recognized as a fetus being a human being, so this makes a strong argument for people not being able to consider abortion an act of murder. It is very difficult for even someone to draw the line on the number of months maximum that should be allowed for an abortion, because the actual day of conception cannot always be measured accurately. Therefore, if a maximum time period was proposed then how could someone really prove that it is in fact 24 months, and what kind of proof would that have to present in order to go through with the abortion. I?fve heard arguments before that classifying a fetus as a human is rather ridiculous when if in fact it was taken out from the mother it wouldn?ft be able to breathe on its own.
(Morgentaler, Henry, "Abortion Is a Moral Choice" . The Abortion Controversy. Lynette Knapp, Ed. Current Controversies Series. Greenhaven Press, 2001. Excerpted from Henry Morgentaler, "The Moral Case for Abortion," Free Inquiry, Summer 1996. Reprinted with permission from Free Inquiry.
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. 12 October 2005)
There was a recent report in the New Scientist, about the US and New Zealand conducted a study on when a fetus starts to feel pain. Before the study was conducted, the US Government made claims that a fetus could feel pain after 20 weeks. However, the study concluded that the fetus is in a sleep-like state, and that they really can feel any pain until they reach 29 weeks. There is another argument that the fetus does have a heart beat before it is born, so clearly it is very hard to clarify when or if in fact a fetus should be considered a living being. Therefore, this point signifies that abortion really can?ft be seen as committing an act of murder when no one is really able to define when a fetus is actually considered a living being.
(Coghlan, Andy & Young, Emma. Why fetuses don't feel pain. (This week: International news and exclusives) New Scientist, Sept 3, 2005 v187 i2515 p8(2) Retrieved from EBSCOhost on 10/12/05)
In this section I will state arguments on why abortion should become illegal, and I will back up these statements with my researched material. A person not wanting an added responsibility or a person that feels that they aren?ft mature enough really isn?ft that good of reasons to have an abortion. There was a study done in 1987 which surveyed 1,900 patients at 30 abortion clinics on why young women as well as older ones wanted to get an abortion. The results showed that young women under the age of 18 didn?ft want to have a baby due to the fact it would take away their personal freedom, and it would also interfere with school as well as personal goals. The older women wanted abortion due to the fact that they didn?ft want to support another kid, and also they already had way too many responsibilities in their life. I suppose that there would be a little more understanding on what the younger girls are going through, but this lack of responsibility show not justify terminating a potential life. There are many consequences that happen in life for making poor choices, and taking the easy way out is not always justifiable. Starting in Elementary school Sex Education starts to be adding into the curriculum, so these young people know that having unprotected sex can lead to pregnancies. Therefore, if these girls and guys still decide that they will do whatever they please, then really they should have to face the consequences of having to raise a kid. The potential life should not have their chance at life due to the fact their parents are irresponsible. This topic deals with the theory of egoism, where these parents are thinking for the greater good for themselves rather than what is said to be a potential life.
(Lunneborg, Patricia "An Unwanted Pregnancy Justifies an Abortion.?h Abortion. Tamara L. Roleff, Ed. Opposing Viewpoints® Series. Greenhaven Press, 1997. Excerpted from Abortion: A Positive Decision by Patricia Lunneborg (Bergin & Garvey, an imprint of the Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc., Westport, Conn., 1992). Copyright ©1992 by Patricia Lunneborg. Reprinted with permission.
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. 17 October 2005)
Right now, there is a great concern in the US that social security will soon dry up due to the fact that the birth rate is decreasing, so that means we have a lot more older folks to support through fewer younger workers. In fact the birth rate in the 1960?fs was at about 24% compared to the current birth rate which is approximately 14%, so you can see there is a huge gap between past and current generations.
(U.S.Source:World Almanac & Book of Facts, Births and Deaths; 2005, p73-73, 1/6p,
http://26827.mctlibproxy.pals.msus.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&an=16981937 Database: Academic Search Premier)
It is said that many people really don?ft even know that there really is an option for adoption, because a survey conducted at the abortion clinics showed that out of all the people who became pregnant only 2-3 % decided to give their kid up for adoption. That seems like a very low number, and this could reinforce that the option for adoption is not very emphasized in our society. Instead of aborting the fetus many people could help the birth rates from declining as well as making the couples who want to adopt happy. Therefore, with this in mind abortion should be made illegal, because there are better options such as adoption out there. This point sort of deals with Kant?fs Kingdom of End?fs in the way that not giving these fetuses a chance at life with some other loving parents treats the fetuses as a means to an end, because they really don?ft have a say in any of this matter.
(Muller , Jerry Z. "Restricting Abortion Would Be Destructive to Families.?h The Abortion Controversy. Lynette Knapp, Ed. Current Controversies Series. Greenhaven Press, 2001. Excerpted from Jerry Z. Muller, "The Conservative Case for Abortion: Family Values vs. Family Planning," The New Republic, August 21, 1995. Copyright © 1995 by The New Republic, Inc. Reprinted with permission from The New Republic.
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. 13 October 2005)
I will now state my position on this very controversial topic, which really involves understanding and respecting both arguments on the legality of abortion. I really feel strongly that the constitution should not be altered since it represents what guidelines are forefathers set for us, and challenging this in ruling in my opinion is wrong. I am not a woman, but with regards to abortion I could never choose to abort the Zygote (Fetus) which I fertilized. However, I feel that some people have legitimate reasons to justify an abortion, and so I cannot justify making abortion illegal. I am a member of a Catholic Parish, and I understand how they see things, but I also am a very logical thinker. The debate over when a human is considered a living being in my mind really can?ft be established. I do have a friend who was a product of a rape, and he turned out to be a really fine guy. He graduated from college, never experimented with drugs, and is a pretty happy person. I guess my life would be different if his Mom decided to abort him, because we would have never had the chance to have met and become really good friends. It is true that our life is full of difficult decisions as well as responsibilities, and so we have to be the ones that examine the ethical and logical issues of an argument before making a decision. There are too many people who make impulsive decisions without thinking things through, and this later can come back to haunt them. Ethics is a very important subject to study, because it addresses all sides of the issue, and not just the single view that one has always had. Therefore, I understand why there are many people who see abortion as absolutely wrong, but I believe in our constitution as well as laws, so I feel that abortion should remain a legal act.