My issue is the ongoing abortion debate in America. The sides of pro-life and pro-choice have divided the nation since Roe v. Wade in 1973 (Kennedy). Major issues in contention are the morality of abortion and contraception. The issue of abortion has long polarized the nation - it is unique because it is extremely divisive, turning mild moderates into extremists. Abortion remains and will continue to remain a crucial issue because it forces us as a nation to define exactly where life begins.
The abortion is a huge motivator in voter participation. According to a Fox News poll, abortion is an important issue to 45% of the voters. Colorado's Amendment 48 proposed that life began at fertilization. According to the Denver Post, the issue warranted an over 2-million voter turnout, whereas the average for a ballot election is 1.4 million. In South Dakota, which bans abortion, Measure 11, would've legalized abortion in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's health or life was endangered. The issue drew massive numbers to the polls and Measure 11 was defeated. The major demographics in this issue are women, because it has to do with their reproductive rights and bodies, and Christian conservatives, who equa
te abortion to murder.
There are hundreds of linkage groups on this issue. The major pro-life advocate groups are National Right to Life Committee, Focus on the Family, American Family Association and Live Action. The major pro-choice advocate groups are Planned Parenthood, NARAL, National Organization for Women and the ACLU. The pro-lifers will usually spotlight their issue by picketing outside abortion clinics, handing out brochure
s with graphic images of the procedure on them. Anti-abortion groups have held vigils outside of clinics and formed shoulder to shoulder walls preventing women from entering the clinic. There is a substantial facet of pro-life extremists that often threaten doctors, their staff and their patients. On the extreme right are the pro-lifers who bomb, set fire to, vandalize clinics, attempt to kill or kill doctors (most prominently, Drs. Gunn, Britton, Slepian and Tiller), or attack personnel, doctors and patients with acid. On the other hand, pro-choice groups will hold counter-protests in response to pro-life groups. Their channel is through the court, often providing funds to uphold Roe v. Wade.
The general Republican stance on abortion is pro-life, whereas the general Democrat stance is pro-choice. The most recent, official GOP platform states: "
Faithful to the first guarantee of the Declaration of Independence, we assert the inherent dignity and sanctity of all human life and affirm that the unborn child has
a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed. We support a human life amendment to the Constitution, and we endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment’s protections apply to unborn children. We oppose using public revenues to promote or perform abortion and will not fund organizations which advocate it. We support the appointment of judges who respect traditional family values and the sanctity and
dignity of innocent human life...whereas the most recent Democratic platform conflicts with the Republican stance, saying:
The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman's right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right.The Democratic Party also strongly supports access to affordable family planning services and comprehensive age-appropriate sex education which empower people to make informed choices and live healthy lives. We
also recognize that such health care and education help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and thereby also reduce the need for abortions. The Democratic Party also strongly supports a woman's decision to have a child by ensuring access to and availability of programs for pre and post natal health care, parenting skills, income support, and caring adoption programs.There is a small faction in each party that opposes their party's view, i.e. Republicans sup
porting abortion or Democrats against it, but for the most part, the general party stance is reflected. There is no third party based solely on abortion, but the U.S. Green Party is pro-choice. The current government policy is dictated under landmark case Roe v. Wade, which legalizes abortion. However, state legislature sometimes conflicts with federal law, since 29 states banning abortion, although 21 of the
state laws are unenforceable.
Partial-birth abortions have been banned under the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, which was upheld by the case Gonzalez v. Carhart . In 2004, the Unborn Victims of Violence Act was passed, allowing those who killed a pregnant women to be tried for two murders instead of one. This caused much controversy, since pro-choicers viewed it as a step toward banning abortion. On numerous occasions, conservative congressmen and advocates have tried to overturn Roe v. Wade or pass a law banning abortion nationwide, but have failed.
This issue primarily impacts women. The hostility over this issue have caused a great d
eal of conflict in the past decades, but ultimately, this issue decides
whether or whether not women have the right to get abortions. Having Roe v. Wade in place means that a women who needs an abortion can get one without having to go through unsafe or unsanitary methods. It expands women's reproductive rights, the right to choose what they want to do with their bodies. The policy benefits women who have been a victim of rape or incest, whose pregnancies are life or health threatening, or who simply cannot afford to take care of a child. The negative impact is against the fetus, who isn't carried to term.
I hold a pro-choice stance of abortion, especially in cases of rape, incest, or threat to life or health. I believe in the right to choose and I believe in a woman's sovereignty over her own body. In cases of rape, incest or threat to life or health, I believe it is completely within the mother's right to abort, since these are the cases in which she didn't consent to the act of sex or she must surely give up her own life for a chance at the fetus' survival. In cases outside of this dominion, the morality grays but my ethics still stand: it is in the woman's right to choose whether or whether not she wants to have an abortion.
In many cases, a woman cannot shoulder the heavy cost of having or raising a child. Carrying a child to term means lost working hours needed for financial sustenance, limited physical capability and the cost of keeping a healthy diet with prenatal vitamins. Having the actual child adds on the hospital cost, which can sometimes be unaffordable for mothers on the lower end of the socioeconomic ladder. And even if the mother chooses to give up the child for adoption, the foster care system is extremely flawed and rife with problems.
Furthermore, bans on abortion do not stop people from having abortions, only having abortions safely. I suspect the number of women who want abortions for any reason remains somewhat constant year to year, Roe v. Wade or not. An outright ban on abortion won't change the fact that 1.37 million women per year want abortions because they've been raped, the pregnancy threatens their own life or health, or they've found themselves in a situation where they do not or cannot keep the child. The only thing that will change is more women dying because of unsafe or unsanitary abortion procedures they procure via a back alley. Before Roe v. Wade, about half of all maternal deaths from 1900-1950 resulted from illegal abortion.
The bone of contention with pro-lifers is with their approach - they use uncalled for vitriolic language, exaggerated graphic images, excessive hyperbole and extremism to convey their point. Going to the lengths to harass and threaten patients, staff and doctors already seems extreme to me, so going to the lengths to assassinate, set fire to, bomb, or throw acid is completely bizarre, criminal and unjust. Many pro-lifers use religion as their basis, but I feel that religion should not form the basis of any law. There is a separation of church and state. Freedom of religion is guaranteed, so dictating a law under a religious pretext that extends over all citizens conflicts directly with this long held tenet of the United States.
Nearly all abortions take place in the first trimester, when the placenta is still dependent on its mother to survive. It cannot survive independently. The question isn't where life begins, but when biologically independent and sustainable life begins. Numerous studies have shown that it cannot feel pain. The most recent study echoes all the others, suggesting that babies can distinguish pain around 35-37 weeks gestation, just before the child would normally be born. The gestation of a fetus is a unique biological progression, yet one that completely lacks independence. Sustenance is not only tied to, but inextricable from, the sustenance of the mother. Most importantly, the regulation of fetal health requires the direct coercion of a mother. The issue of where life, philosophically, theologically, etc., begins is unclear - there are thousands of different opinions on where life begins, so how can one viewpoint become law over all others? The fetus may be life, but it is certainly not independent life, and for that reason the right of termination justly belongs to the mother.
Finally, denying a woman the rights to her own body is heading down a slippery slope. Overturning Roe v. Wade essentially denies women sovereignty over their own body, one of the most basic rights, certainly critical to civil rights. If women can't make their own reproductive decisions, what comes next? Can we force women to stop using contraception because it's denying a possible placenta's right to life? Can we ban sterilization, even though many women choose not to have children for personal, genetic or medical reasons? A woman has the right to her own body, and taking that away would be a fundamental violation of her rights.
How long did you spend on this?
ReplyDeleteAnd you wrote all this during school?
ReplyDeleteI think the timestamp is wrong, but I got most of it done during Gym, so about an hour...
ReplyDeleteAlso, were we not supposed to answer the questions on the outline? That would've saved me so much googling...