Women possess the sole right to determine what they do with their bodies.
There has been an unending abortion debate in the U.S. dating back to 1973. It has been nearly five decades now, and the debate has continued to permeate politics in America. With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, there is now a more desperate call than ever to codify a woman's right to choose into law.
By the turn of the 20th century, every state had classified abortion as a felony. Some states even limited exceptions for medical emergencies and cases of incest and rape. The sexual revolutions of the 1960s and 1970s introduced renewed interest in public discussions about reproductive freedoms, family planning, and access to legal and safe abortion services. This is but a glimpse of why we need to legalize abortion and give women their freedom so that we can finish the debate once and for all.
During a 2020 presidential debate, when asked about abortion policies, President Joe Biden said, “we will protect a woman’s right to choose and fight to keep access to abortion legal.” He promised to rescind the so-called "global gag rule." President Biden's sentiments make a lot of sense because restricting abortion denies women of their rights and freedom.
According to a 2019 survey, about six in ten U.S adults said that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. The obvious fact remains that choosing abortion is a woman’s right and should not be restricted by religious or governmental authority. This overcomes any right claimed for an embryo or fetus. Restricting abortion may cause pregnant women to resort to illegal abortions for a lack of legal options. Illegal abortions which could be dangerous and may cause irreparable injuries or death to the woman.
Roe v. Wade, during the landmark abortion case of 1973, stated that the constitution offers "a guarantee of certain areas or zones of privacy." The right to privacy covers the reasons why a woman decides to terminate her pregnancy. When Roe v. Wade was overturned, this right to privacy and a woman's right to choose was stripped away from her.
The decision of when and whether to have children lies entirely with the woman. According to former Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor, during the 1992 decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, "The ability of women to participate equally in the economic and social life of the nation has been facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives." The ruling, in its sense, offers women more liberation.
Abortion allows pregnant women to choose if they want to bring fetuses with profound abnormalities to full term. Some fetuses may be characterized by extreme disorders which guarantee death before or after birth. Some disorders may include missing brain, limb-body wall complex, or anencephaly. It would be inhuman to force women to carry such fetuses. Since most couples don't have resources to take care of these conditions when a child is finally born, woman often consider abortion at an early stage.
Denying women the right to abort may cause them to lose their jobs, be on public welfare, be victims of domestic violence, or be below the poverty level. According to a study by the University of California at San Francisco, women who were denied abortion due to having passed the gestation period are three times more likely to be below the poverty level. Similarly, 76% of women turned away ended up on jobless benefits compared to 44% of women who secured abortion.
The facts are clear that making abortion legal is the better decision, providing a host of benefits for the woman while maintain a woman's basic right to choose.
