Controversial Issue – Abortion Abortion is said to be one of the most controversial issues in today’s society. Across the country, women sit anxiously in waiting rooms until their name is called upon. One by one you see women walk in and out not realizing what harm they have done. Abortion is however legal but different groups tend to protest against this issue. I strongly disagree with abortion being legal. What makes abortion so controversial in today’s society? Abortion is controversial because there are many perspectives that can be viewed from.
The biggest issue with abortion is determining when an embryo becomes a human being. Some argue that the fetus becomes a human being at the time of conception while others argue that the embryo does not become a human being until after birth. I believe that the fetus becomes a human at the time of conception. There are many questions that one must ask him or herself when deciding to be either for or against abortion. Both sides of this issue provide respectable, in depth arguments on why their side should be dominant. Being for abortion is called pro-choice ad being against abortion is called pro-life.
One side of this controversial issue is pro-choice. Pro-choice is the belief that women have the right to choose to abort a baby from their body. Pro-choice abortion is also a movement, which fights for the rights of women to have the choice to end unwanted pregnancies. The people of the United States never voted on or supported this pro-choice position. Actually, it was the U. S. Supreme Court that legalized abortion as a result of Roe vs. Wade in 1973. Roe vs. Wade centrally held that a mother may abort her pregnancy for any reason, up until the point at which the fetus becomes viable.
The Court defined viable as being, potentially able to live outside the mother’s womb. Supporters and protesters of pro-choice say that if abortion was illegal then the governments basically controlling your body. Therefore, they’re taking away personal freedom. Also many say its better for society to have babies aborted than have them brought up to be poor and neglected, where not only will the child suffer, but society too when that child develops a higher attraction to crime, welfare, etc. Some say giving up a child for adoption can be just as emotionally damaging as having an abortion.
One of the main arguments is that some believe abortion is not considered as murder because it is performed before a fetus has developed into a human being. However, the other side is called pro-life. Pro-life is a term representing a variety of perspectives and beliefs referring to the opposition of abortion and support for fetal rights. Pro-life individuals generally believe that human life should be valued either from conception or implantation until natural death. Pro-life campaigners believe that abortion is a form of murder and demeans the value of human life.
When a pregnant woman feels pain in her stomach, she doesn’t say “Oh, the fetus kicked”; she says “Oh, the baby kicked. ” This is true, after conception you have a real human being waiting to enter the world. Some supporters even believe making abortion illegal can dramatically cut the time for couples who spend years waiting on a waiting list to adopt a child. Also some say that the abortion decision is often made by minors or young adults, who don’t have the maturity and life experiences to make good decisions.
Many also say that abortion eliminates legal rights of the unborn child, meaning the documents of our founding fathers state that we are all entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. So by legalizing abortion, we take those rights away from our future American citizens. Do you support Pro-choice or Pro-life? This is a controversial question in this issue. I believe that the fetus becomes a human at the time of conception therefore I support Pro-life. Legalizing abortion will change the entire nation’s perspectives of natural rights.
Just because babies can’t speak for themselves doesn’t mean they dont have any rights. Abortion is against doctor’s Hippocratic Oath. Every American doctor must take this fundamental oath, which says “First, do no harm”. Killing the embryo is considered as murder. Whether or not you think abortion should be allowed, it cannot be disputed that a doctor is harming a living organism. Killing a human is therefore a violation of the oath. Each year there are 46 million abortions conducted through out the world.
In the United States alone there are around 1,370,000 abortions practiced annually, according to the Alan Guttmacher Institute. 46 million lives are being murdered just because of an unwanted pregnancy. Is that a reasonable excuse for killing? When couples have sex they know the consequences of a pregnancy. When we look at the age factor of women who received these abortions, 52% were younger than 25 years old and 19% were teenagers. The abortion rate is highest for those women aged 18 to 19. However, many other women feel they need to take advantage of the right to have an abortion.
They feel they can have unprotected sex and they do not have to worry because they can just go get an abortion for $500. In conclusion, while some argue that abortion is morally wrong others will continue to argue that the only way to completely achieve freedom is to recognize the need and desire for abortion to be legal. I strongly disagree with abortion being legal. Pro-life activists carry a strong argument, and continue to push their beliefs. They feel so strongly about these beliefs that violence has broken out in some instances.
Pro-choice activists, also carry very strong points. They believe that the child inside them is their property and should be able to do what they desire and it’s not alive until birth. In 1973, the U. S. Supreme Court decided that as long as the baby lived in the womb he or she would be the property of the mother. Because of this decision almost every third baby conceived in America is killed. “A woman has a right to her own body” is an idea more and more women are realizing but that idea ignores the unborn child’s right.