The issue of abortion has generated a lot of controversy for a long period of time. The debate on whether to legalize abortion has mostly been taking place in religious and legal quarters. Most of the people who have been vocal about illegalizing abortion are religious and moral leaders. However, there have been women activists who have come out to strongly to argue for the legalization of abortion.
A question, therefore, arises on what would be the most appropriate course action to undertake. Should abortion be legalized, thus, allowing it to be commited at people’s own will? In my own view, I strongly disagree with the legalization of abortion. This paper will discuss some of the many arguments that have been made against abortion. Some of the arguments that have been made for the legalization of abortion will also be analyzed. This will give the readers of this paper knowledge that will enable them to decide whether to support or condemn abortion.
There are a number of arguments that have been made against abortion. For example, some critics of abortion claim that it is an act murder. These critics argue that the life of an individual begins at conception. They, therefore, claim that the act of carrying out an abortion is pretty much similar to the commission of murder since it results to the death of an individual. To summarize there argument, these critics claim that the act of abortion is a gross violation of the human obligation to respect the sanctity of an individual’s life.
Critics of abortion also claim that all women who are not ready to handle the responsibility of motherhood should give up their babies for adoption instead of aborting them. Those against abortion claim that act of abortion should not be supported with a claim that it is a solution for women who are not ready for motherhood. They argue that there are a lot of couples worldwide who have not been able to have children on their own. Therefore, such couples, are willing to adopt babies whose mothers are not willing to take care of them. Thus, the critics of abortion claim suggest that all women who are not willing to take care of their children, should carry their pregnancy to its full term and, thereafter, give up the baby for adoption after its birth.
The third reason why some people strongly criticize the act of abortion is the fact that it is wrong from both the moral and religious perspective. It is argued that if any individual claims to be both moral and religious, then he/she should not allow the act of abortion. This argument, therefore, explains why religious and moral leaders have been at the front line to condemn the act of abortion.
It has also been argued that the act of abortion should be discouraged due to the risk it poses to the lives of women who undergo the procedure. Critics of abortion claim that the abortion procedure is dangerous since it exposes women to the risk of experiencing medical complications such as the occurrences of ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, development of the pelvic inflammatory disease and even death. In a bid to reduce the occurrence of such complications among women, some people have come out strongly to criticize the practice of abortion.
Critics also argue that the act of abortion should be discouraged due to the fact that it subjects women to intense stress and psychological pain. Those against abortion claim that a majority of the women, who find themselves in a situation of carrying an unplanned pregnancy, are young and naive. Critics of abortion, therefore, argue that such young and naïve women make random decisions to carry out abortions without considering the psychological effect and stress they shall experience after they are through with the abortion procedure. Therefore, critics propose that abortion should not be allowed in order to protect young and naive women from suffering the unexpected stress and psychological pain experienced as a result of abortion.
Counter arguments for the case against abortion
Even though most people around the world are against abortion due to the negative effects the practice has, there also exists a good number of people who support the legalization of the practice. The supporters of abortion have also put across some arguments in a bid to explain why they support the practice.
An example of one of the arguments made by the supporters of the practice of abortion, is their claim that all women have the right to choose what they should do with their bodies and pregnancies. Supporters argue that restricting a woman to decide what to do with her body and pregnancy is equivalent to infringing on her civil rights. They argue that if the government forces women to continue with their pregnancies then it should also force women to either practice contraception or sterilization. Thus, supporters of abortion claim that if a woman makes a decision to carry out an abortion, then she should not be victimized in any way.
The supporters of abortion also argue that illegalizing the practice of abortion will have a resultant effect of an increased number of unsafe and risky abortions. They argue that if women are prevented to go to certified medical physicians to carry out safe abortions, then they shall result to consulting unqualified people for abortions in the backstreets, thus increasing the frequency of occurrence of unsafe abortions.
It has also been argued that the practice of abortion should be legalized due to the fact that it would reduce the number of babies who are born by women who are unwilling to take care them. The supporters of abortion argue that it is unfair to for a child to be born into a world where there is nobody who is willing to take good care of it. They continue to argue that it is better to terminate the existence of a fetus in a woman’s rather that expose a the new born baby to a life of misery and neglect. Thus, they propose that all women who are not ready to raise a baby should be allowed to terminate their pregnancy rather than exposing the baby to the probability of living a difficult life.
Supporters of abortion also claim that teenagers who get pregnant and are not ready, able and willing to raise a baby, should be allowed to abort it. This is because they claim that teenage women who become young at a tender age face a high likelihood of having a grim future. This is because such teenagers will be forced to leave school to take care of their babies. Their lack of proper education will most likely force them to become dependent on other. Such teenagers are also likely get into early marriages to in order to increase their ability to raise their child. However, such marriages have often led to divorces or cases of abandonment. Young teenagers are, therefore, likely to experience difficult lives in the future. This is the reason why some people propose that young teenage girls should be allowed to abort.
References
Brown, J., & Evangelisto, R. P. (2011). The Moral and Logical Arguments Against Abortion. American Life League, 1-12.
Cassidy, K. (2012, October 21). Abortion and Cultural Interpretation. Retrieved from Uffl.org: http://www.uffl.org/vol%202/cassidy2.pdf
Law Students for Reproductive Justice. (2008). Access to abortion around the world. New York: Law Students for Reproductive Justice. Retrieved from Law Students for Reproductive Justice.
Lotz, M. (2012). Ethical Arguments Cocerning the Moral Permissibility of Abortion. Australia: University of Melbourne.
Lowen, L. (2012, October 21). 10 Abortion Arguments: 10 Arguments For Abortion, 10 Arguments Against Abortion. Retrieved from About.com: http://womensissues.about.com/od/reproductiverights/a/AbortionArgumen.htm
Right to Life Charitable Trust. (2012, October 21). Abortion – A Life and Death Issue. Retrieved from Right to Life Charitable Trust: http://www.righttolifetrust.org.uk/downloads/education-packs/KS3AbortionLifeandDeath.pdf
rsrevision. (2012, October 21). Pro-choice arguments (for abortion). Retrieved from rsrevision.com/gcse: http://www.rsrevision.com/GCSE/christian_perspectives/life/abortion/for.htm
World faiths.com. (2012, October 21). Social Reasons For and Against Abortion. Retrieved from World- Faiths.com: http://www.world-faiths.com/GCSE%20Short%20course/social_reasons_for_and_against_abortion.htm
