A Pro-choice View of The Issue of Abortion

Should men have a “say” on what a women can and can’t do to their body? Why should women have any reproductive rights? Should an 11-year-old girl who got raped be forced to carry and deliver their rapist child? Last month a little girl in Ohio got raped by a 26-year-old multiple times leaving the minor pregnant. With the state law passed in April but not in effect till July of 2019, it denies victims like herself to not have a choice but to have the unwanted fetus. The law prohibits women from obtaining an abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected, 4 to 5 weeks into a pregnancy. This is before most women may know they are pregnant.

Raising a child is not an easy task, it is a huge responsibility and requires a lot of social and emotional commitment. If the woman feels as if they are not ready for a child, more than likely it may mean the pregnancy is not desired. Allowing the fetus to develop into a baby and raising it in an unstable environment without any love or attention is far worse than an abortion. Often times, the child will grow up to develop low self-esteem, feel more alienated, hostile, aggressive, and antisocial amongst other people. Long-term, affecting the child when they have children of their own as well by following the same pattern their parents did of not showing any love to the child.

No woman ever wants to be in a situation where she has to decide whether or not she wants to continue with her pregnancy. However, while it can be an agonizing decision to make meanwhile for some women it may feel like it the best decision to make. It is important to keep in mind that every women’s circumstances on why they may choose to have an abortion vary. Often times, a woman may have abortion because it is the wrong timing, cannot afford a baby, or they are in an abusive relationship.

Understanding why a woman’s reason to having an abortion can help inform others that are “Pro-life”. According to survey done by Guttmacher institute, where 1,209 abortion patients were interviewed on the motive of an abortion taking place. Most of the responses they received were that having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to take care of dependents being 74%. Second highest response was they could not afford to have a baby now resulting 73%; and 48% did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems. A woman’s decision to having an abortion is often motivated by a diverse reasoning behind the motive.

Each year, roughly half of the 1.3 million women who have abortions each year are 25 or older. About 60% have given birth to one child prior to getting an abortion and only 17% are teenagers getting abortions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the race of those women being white accounting for 52.6%, African-American for 35.3%, and other ethnicities resulting for 12.1%. After making the hard decision of going through with the abortion, often times most women don’t regret the decision because it is the best for both.

After the procedure of an abortion has already taken place, majority of women do not require any sort of psychological help. Having regret or feeling some way after is rare for women; in fact, they may feel relieved after going through all the obstacles standing on their way. Ultimately, in rare cases some women may feel sadness or guilt after undergoing through the decision of having the abortion but can be totally normal as for not every women is the same. This feeling of grieve normally lasts only for a few days.

Illegal abortions back in 1965 made up for the one-sixth of all pregnancy-related deaths in the United States. Luckily, back in 1973 the U.S. Supreme Court Case, Roe v. Wade ruled the rights for women to be able to safely access an abortion. With this constitution right it provides the fundamental “right to privacy” that protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to decide whether or not to have an abortion under any circumstances. Without this right women would have no say on what they are allowed to do with their bodies.

Although abortion is viewed as murder in many countries, it is a forever ongoing controversial topic that separates each one another. Abortion can go against ones religious beliefs or morals they are accustomed to. Meanwhile, other’s feel it may be the right choice depending on the situation and fear of bringing an unwanted child to a cruel world with no love.

Abortion becoming fully legal in California was the best decision the United States of America has made and other states should follow California by example. Everyone who has sex without any protection or birth control must be prepared to face the consequences. Unplanned pregnancies should not happen, but still occur. Abortions cause a significant amount of less damage to society rather than an unwanted, unloved child. I believe this is a woman’s choice and there is no place for a man or the government to force a woman to have an unloved child.