Dear next president,

As you know, abortion rights are a very controversial and touchy subject. I believe the government should absolutely not have a say in what women do with their bodies. I believe abortion should be completely legal. Abortion is a fundamental right. In all honesty, eliminating safe and legal abortions will only result in deadly, unsanitary and unclean abortions. 

According to "20 pro-choice abortion statistics," 13% of pregnancy related deaths occur due to unsafe abortions worldwide. This number is personally shocking. Encouraging self-responsibility-meaning let the woman decide what she wants to do without any interference from counselors trying to change her mind- and keeping abortions legal, we could easily decrease this number.

Further, I understand that some may argue that the baby can feel the pain or that you're killing a human being. This statement is actually not the case; the baby can not feel any pain until the third trimester after the cortex develops, which is way after abortions are even considered. Also, legally, the fetus is not considered a living human being until the mother has given birth. Therefore, both of these main arguments are based on religious views and not science.

Additionally, when I was 6 years old, my 15 year old sister became pregnant. My father gave her the option to keep it, or abort it. Considering the abortion laws back then, she could not abort it. We simply could not afford it. During childbirth, my sister almost died of blood loss because her body was too fragile, as did the baby. Also stated by "20 pro-choice abortion statistics," as of July 7, 2016, the risk of dying during childbirth is 13 times higher than during abortion. This number is frightening, but also debunks other arguments that abortion is more dangerous. How can we take away abortions when women are at more risk of dying giving childbirth?

As a matter of a fact, in Roe v. Wade is it states that abortion is a fundamental right that women have as human beings. A right that should not be taken away by the legislators of the government. Legislators that disagree due to religion when there is supposed to be a separation of church and state. Legislators who will likely never experience child birth or the physical and mental damages that could come with it. 

I seriously urge you to consider keeping abortion legal for all the women in the United States and to take their health into consideration.