Lizzy Michigan

Abortion

Women deserve a choice.

Dear Future President,

Abortion should be legal in all states. Women should be allowed to choose what to do with their body without the government intervening. When it comes to the topic of abortion, most of us will agree that it’s very controversial topic. This argument is usually a question of ethics and values. Whereas some are convinced that terminating your pregnancy is murder, others maintain the view that a woman has the choice to do what she wants with her body. Pro-Life which are the people who are against abortion and believe having an abortion is murder and manslaughter and is ethically wrong. The other side is Pro-Choice which means that these people believe in the right of the pregnant woman to choose what to do with her body.

The pro life believers are weighing the rights of the unborn fetus against the choices of the pregnant woman. One believer of the Pro-Life Campaign says, ''The baby's heartbeat starts at around 12 to 18 days, so it's murder to kill someone with a heartbeat.” These people have a very firm belief that killing a fetus in its early stages is a violation of its right to life and is morally wrong. The support for abortion is declining, according to a survey of incoming college freshmen, “support for abortion rights has been dropping since the early 1990's: 54 percent of 282,549 students polled at 437 schools last fall...The figure was down from 67 percent a decade earlier.” Even though there is less support for abortion than there has been in the past, we all deserve to have the option if need be. The government shouldn’t tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her body because it belongs to her and not them.

The opposed side, Pro-Choice believe that the choice of the pregnant woman trumps all and that woman have the right to choose what to do, whether that’s to terminate or keep their fetus. One in three women will have an abortion by the time they reach menopause. “A recent study published in the journal PLOS One finds that more than 95 percent of women felt the abortion was the right decision, both immediately after the procedure and three years later.” Some opposed might say this is murder but these women made their choice. Their choice was based on what’s best for them and the fetus as well as their beliefs regarding the topic and if they feel it’s what's best for them who is the government to tell them they can’t do it? The supreme court case Roe v Wade ruled that having an abortion would be legal,with regulations and guidelines but even with the restrictions of the law, a woman still has complete control over her own body and can make her own mind up depending on her values and the pro life side is trying to undo all of this so the government controls everything and woman have to choice. In cases of rape resulting in pregnancy, 32,101 women a year become pregnant from being sexually violated and raped against their will. Those women shouldn't be forced to keep their baby. A constant reminder of what happened to them. They shouldn't have to endure that additional emotional pain that comes along with their child.

Abortion needs to be legal. It needs to be legalized in all fifty states because the 125.9 million woman that live in the United States deserve a choice. Deserve to do what is best for them. They do not deserve to be told what is ethically right vs wrong and chastised for their judgement. The government does not get to determine what the pregnant woman should do, but rather she make the decision for herself.

Links: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/30/style/surprise-mom-i-m-against-abortion.html?_r=0 

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/05/opinion/how-to-really-defend-planned-parenthood.html

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