Pro Life Vs Pro Choice Essay

The controversial topic of abortion has been around for many centuries. However, the debate between pro life and pro choice really began after the 1973 Roe v. Wade case. Jane Roe was an unmarried woman who wanted to end her pregnancy safely and legally. Previously to this time abortions were deemed unethical and illegal, only to be performed if the mother-to-be’s life was at risk or if she had been raped. The Supreme Court looked at plenty of cases and drew on decades worth of case law about, not only abortion, but fundamental human rights as well. Times were changing drastically, and there was a nationwide push to get rid of laws that had been in place since before the turn of the century. The Supreme Court finally reached a decision, recognizing “that a woman’s right to make her own decisions about her pregnancy deserves

the highest level of constitutional protection”. Meaning that The Supreme Court recognized the constitutional right to privacy also encompassed the right to terminate a pregnancy. Jane Roe was granted her abortion and the debate between pro choice and pro life had officially taken off (“Roe v. Wade: Its History and Impact” 1).
Abortion rights in the United States have been a controversial topic for many years, and has become even more prevalent in recent years.

As stated above, abortion has been declared to be a fundamental right by the Supreme Court. Despite Roe v. Wade’s claims, many states are closing down abortion clinics, such as Planned Parenthood, because their leaders believe abortion is wrong. Only thirteen states have been supportive of abortion. States also make it hard for minors to get an abortion because states have varying laws that require either parental notification and/or parental consent. While some states require parental consent from only one parent, others require both parents to consent to the minor’s abortion. Along with states making it difficult for women to get an abortion, birth control is also hard for women to get their hands on. While condoms are readily available to men and are quite cheap, women’s birth control, whether it be a pill or a shot, costs a lot of money and health care doesn’t cover it. However, with ObamaCare, more women are getting birth control at zero copay. In 2013, women saved almost $1.4 billion in out-of-pocket

costs.
Pro choice, as defined by Merriam Webster Dictionary, is the belief that pregnant women should have the right to choose to have an abortion. Pro choice advocates believe that life begins when the fetus exits the womb and is able to survive outside the womb. Surviving outside the womb means that the baby has brain activity, a beating heart, and has taken its first breath. Some believe that human life doesn’t begin until the baby has a developed mind, which happens around one to three years of age. Pro choice advocates and doctors state that the concept of personhood at conception is a religious view and many scientists and doctors have different views as to when a fetus is actually a person. Scientists have also discovered that fertilization happens after twenty-four hours, this means that emergency contraceptives, such as Plan B, are not killing a fetus because the fetus has yet to develop. Pro choice advocates support access to affordable and reliable contraceptives. Abortion is also one of the safest medical procedures performed today. Laws trying to prevent abortions from happening are not actually stopping abortions, they are just making abortion unsafe for women. When states try to prevent abortion by closing down abortion clinics, they are condoning the practice of ‘back alley’ abortions, ‘coat hanger’ abortions, and unsafe practices by trained professionals that now no longer have access to the tools and antiseptics they once had available to them. The decision to have an abortion should be made by a woman, not a politician, because it’s her body, and women should have control over their bodies.
While many people support abortion, in the U.S. government it is the Democratic Party that fights for the right to an abortion. The platform that the Democratic Party runs on in regard to abortion, supports abortion on demand. It also calls for the repeal of the Hyde Amendment. The Hyde Amendment restricts the use of federal funds for abortions. The Democratic Party platform also supports government funding of abortion providers, which includes Planned Parenthood. Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton also supports abortion. She states that an unborn child doesn’t have constitutional rights. She endorses Roe v. Wade and stands with Planned Parenthood. Clinton wants to stop the Republican defunding of the organization, which restricts women’s access to health care services, such as cancer screenings, contraception, and safe, legal abortion. She will also protect and build upon President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, which bans insurance companies from discriminating against women and guarantees more than 55 million women access to preventive care. As the First Lady, Clinton supported Medicaid funding for abortion, she said that reproductive health was “crucial in advancing the cause of women,” stated that “government has no place in the personal decision a women makes about whether to bring a child into the world,” and, at the UN 4th Conference of Women, stated that “it is a violation of human rights when women are denied the right to plan their own families.” When Clinton was the Senator of New York, she introduced a bill to guarantee that women in the military had access to emergency contraceptives because women are often victims of sexual assault in the military. Tim Kaine, a U.S. Senator and Hillary Clinton’s running mate, is also a supporter of women’s right to an abortion. Kaine opposes the efforts made by Republicans to weaken Roe v. Wade. He believes that access to contraceptives should not be the decision of a for-profit company and opposes the Supreme Court’s decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby. Kaine also cosponsored the Protecting Women’s Health from Corporate Interference Act in order to restore the contraceptive coverage requirement guaranteed by Obama’s Affordable Care Act. In 2015, Kaine voted against the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. If passed, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act would have protected unborn children who are capable of feeling pain from abortion. In 2015, he also co-sponsored S-217, also known as the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2015. S-217 would nullify all state limits on abortion.
Pro life, as defined by thefreedictionary.com, is advocating the legal protection of human embryos and fetuses, especially by favoring the outlawing of abortion on the ground that it is the taking of a human life. Among the reasons why pro-lifers believe abortion should be illegal is the idea that Roe v. Wade was wrong. In 1973, the Supreme Court had a 7-2 decision that women have the fundamental right to terminate their abortion as they see fit. However, later Supreme Court justices have declared that in that time the Supreme Court had overstepped their bounds because abortion was an issue for legislators not judges. Therefore, the original 7-2 vote should be deemed inaccurate. To add to the list of reasons why it should be illegal, people argue that fetuses fall under the 14th amendment, which states that no person should be “deprived of life” without recourse to the due process of the law. That statement is where a lot of debate falls about when life begins or ends. Most pro-lifers agree that life begins at conception, or when there is a distinct heartbeat. This debate also is present when the statement of abortion being murder is brought up. Many argue that fetuses are also protected due to the federal act “Unborn Victims of Violence.” This specific act states that unborn children are considered to be human beings and that imposes penalties on anyone who would do the child harm with the exception of abortion. Pro-lifers argue that if this law protects unborn children from strangers doing harm, why would it allow a mother to kill her own child (“10 Reasons Why Abortion Should be Illegal” 1). Another argument they bring up is this is the modern day eugenics. The Nazis are notorious for bringing eugenics to a whole new light, and “exterminating” those who were deemed less than perfect. Nowadays with all the tests soon-to-be mothers are given, you can even identify possible diseases with a child, some pro-lifers argue that mothers are getting abortions only when they find out their child would be born with an illness. One of the biggest reasons pro-lifers are against abortion is because of adoption. You could make the argument that every child that is killed through abortion could be a child for a family out there who can’t have one of their own. Although this is a very valid point, pro-choicers can point out that there are on any given day an average of 415,000 children in foster care (“Foster Care” 1). And although that seems relatively small, on average there at thirty-six couples waiting for every one child adopted (Riler, Keith “Thirty-Six Couples Wait for Every One Baby who is Adopted”).
The Republican Party has been quite evident in their views of abortion. They have stated that unborn children have fundamental individual rights and that they do, in fact, fall under the Fourteenth Amendment. They refuse to fund any organization that performs or advocate abortions as well. They support the President's idea of increasing tax incentives and bonuses “to states that place older children in permanent family homes.” The Republican Party has said they want to double abstinence funding to show teens that abstinence is the only true 100% effective contraceptive. That funding would also go to funding the courses that would teach the harmful side effects from having unprotected sex, such as STIs and out of wedlock pregnancies. Although they do oppose abortion they do not want nor intend to inflict punishment on those women who have turned to abortion. Their main goal is to make sure the necessary materials and support is readily available for women experiencing issues during their pregnancy. Donald Trump specifically has been very vocal that his stance is pro-life. Abortions should only be performed in absolute cases such as rape, incest, or the mother's life is at risk. When asked if he would defund Planned Parenthood he stated, “I wouldn't fund it if they have abortion going on. Now, you hear all different numbers. They say it's 3%, other people say it's 85%. That's a big difference. So I'd certainly look into it.” Although Trump has made his stance on abortions quite clear, in 1999 he openly said he was pro-choice. When confronted about this switch in stance he stated, “I've evolved on many issues over the years. And you know who else has? Ronald Reagan evolved on many issues.” he goes on to state that he always hated the idea of abortion, and that a friend of his was going to have an abortion, but didn’t, and now that child is “a total superstar, a great, great child. And I saw that. And I saw other instances.” (Donald Trump on Abortion 1)