The abortion debate is a discussion on whether or not to legalize abortion. The views of both proponents and opponents are based on beliefs. Some of the beliefs in this case include those rooted deeply in culture and also those rooted deeply in religion. One of the reasons why abortion is a major topic is that it occurs on the daily basis. Not all abortion cases are successful, some lead to the loss of the mother. This is another reason why people come together to discuss on whether to come up with laws that prohibits or legalizes abortion. Presented here below are proponents and opponents arguments (Daniel et al., 17).
Proponents of abortion argue that legalizing abortion makes women to enjoy the right of being masters of their bodies. According to their explanations, every human being should be left to enjoy his or her right to be free. To be free in this case mean making personal decisions without having to fear of being prosecuted. In their words, denying women the right to make personal decisions with regards to abortion is a way of discriminating them. This is because men’s freedom is never restricted through rules and regulations. They are left to make personal decisions on what they think is right (Ginsburg et al., 36).
Second, proponents of abortion argue that legalizing abortion supports mothers’ right to life when it is endangered. As per their explanation, some pregnancies bring complications to the mothers. Based on this fact, their argument is that the complications created by the pregnancy should not be left to a level of taking away a mother’s life. Other than medication, the only sure way of dealing with the complications is abortion. To put it in a different way, these proponents argue that the best way to deal with an unwanted effect is to identify the cause and deal with it. In our case, the cause is the developing fetus (Luke et al., 71).
The third argument given by proponents is that it is impossible to have a society with no abortion cases. Proponents of abortion base this argument on the fact that most illegal activities are done underground. They give an example of poaching which is illegal but is done underground. Another example that they give to support their argument is the trade on illegal drugs. According to them, people continue to do illegal activities where they cannot be seen by the law enforcement officers. Based on this fact, proponents of abortion clarify that making abortion illegal will not end this activity (McCaffrey et al., 42).
Another argument given by proponents is that legalizing abortion prevents unborn children from suffering if it has been determined that they will be severely handicapped. Technological advancements have now reached a level where it is easy to predict the future condition of the baby with regards to disability once he or she is born. In the event that it is established that the baby will have severe suffering due to disabilities, it is better according to these proponents to do an abortion. An example of such a disability is twines sharing certain body parts. Many babies that have been born sharing certain parts experience a lot of suffering (Richardson et al., 124).
Opponents of abortion argue that abortion is a form of murder. This is because abortion leads to loss of life. According to them, the fetus loses life once it is detached from the womb of its mother before the designed time. They argue that this kind of killing is similar to those occurring on a daily basis where for example an individual shoots his or her antagonist. In fact, these opponents go further to argue that this kind of killing could be worse than those experienced in our daily life because it is done to an infant who is innocent (Daniel et al., 18).
According to these opponents, women that did not want to conceive should have used available birth control measures. They argue that women who fail to prevent being pregnant by using available techniques or drugs are just ignorant. According to them they should eat their ignorance since this is what they were asking for by not being careful. One of the ways pointed by the opponents of abortion is the morning pill which if taken within 24 hour is capable of preventing pregnancy. They argue that this pill can easily be obtained over the counter at an affordable price. Another way of preventing pregnancy is using such protection as condoms (Ginsburg et al., 37).
The third argument given by opponents is that women who carry out abortion suffer from psychological stress afterwards. In their own words, these opponents argue that there are so many cases where women that carried out abortion are undergoing psychological torture. This especially applies to those who are religious. What causes the stress according to these opponents is that the women feel guilty that they have broken God’s commandment which prohibits any human being from killing another human being. Of great importance to note in this case is the fact that the fetus is considered a human being even though not yet born (Luke et al., 72).
As per their explanation, opponents of abortion argue that abortion wipe out human beings that would have brought a significant change in the world. The opponents give several cases of prominent people whose mothers almost aborted them. According to these opponents, the great men would not exist if their mothers would have aborted them. Based on this fact, the opponents suggest that abortion should be made illegal so as to avoid killing great men that have not been born. The significance of having a great man in the society according to them is that they help solve major society problems (McCaffrey et al., 43).
Comparing the arguments of both Proponents and Opponents of abortion, my opinion is that abortion should be legalized. In my view, women should be left to enjoy their right to freedom. As I see it, the act of coming up with rules and regulations that prohibit abortion is wrong because kit is biased in terms of gender. This is because there are no rules that restrict the freedom rights of males. Most of the rules that apply to the males also apply to the females.
To conclude, the proponents’ way of argument is attractive. One example of the arguments that makes it attractive is the reasoning that it is impossible to have a society with no abortion cases. As shown above, Proponents of abortion base this argument on the fact that most illegal activities are done underground. One more example of the proponents attractive argument is the reasoning that that legalizing abortion prevents unborn children from suffering if it has been determined that they will be severely handicapped. This is for the reason that technological advancements have now reached a level where it is easy to predict the future condition of the baby with regards to disability once he or she is born.
Work Cited
Daniel, Neal. “Shaping constitutional values: Elected government, the Supreme Court, and the abortion debate.” (2016).
Ginsburg, Faye D. Contested lives: The abortion debate in an American community. Univ of California Press, 2015.
Luke, Kristin. Abortion and the Politics of Motherhood. Vol. 759. Univ of California Press, 2014.
McCaffrey, Dawn. “Competitive framing processes in the abortion debate: Polarization‐vilification, frame saving, and frame debunking.” The Sociological Quarterly 41.1 (2013): 41-61.
Richardson, L. Anita. “How Far Can States Go in Regulating Early-Pregnancy Abortions (88-790).” Preview US Sup. Ct. Cas. (2016): 124.
