RREPORT ON TOPIC OF Should Abortion be Legal in the United States?

Introduction of Should Abortion be Legal in the United States?

            Abortion has been one of the hot topics in the United States as the debate is an ongoing one. There are two sections in the U.S society; one section is in favor of the abortion, whereas another section opposes it, and both have their own arguments to defend their opinion. This issue is being battled in the state legislation, at the ballot box as well as in the courts. There are so many arguments to listen about the issue and sometimes, it gets hard to decide between the two viewpoints. So, it is important to look at the views from both sections of the society to decide which arguments are stronger and have more logic as compared to the other. It is important to mention here that the issue of abortion can be analyzed from different perspectives, like some may attach it to the human rights of women, and some others may associate it with their religious beliefs. One way or the other, it is an issue, which needs a proper solution in the United States both on the state and federal levels. In this paper, both viewpoints will be analyzed to see which one has strong logic and arguments to support their views. In United States Abortion should be legal. The reason is that in such cases when there is any life risk then it should be legal.  

            It is vital to look at the views of adults in the United States like what they think about abortion. A recent survey was done in 2019 by the PEW Research Center, which came up with few viable findings to look at. A question was asked in the survey whether abortion should be legal or not. 61% of participants replied in favor of abortion that it should be allowed in some cases, or even all cases, where 38% of people were against it. But both sections had few exceptions to support as well. When the survey analyzed the issue with regards to the political party’s context, it was found out that Democrats were more in favor of the abortion as compared to the Republicans. A survey was conducted in 2017, which revealed that 48% of Americans said that it is morally wrong to go with the abortion, whereas 20% of people were in favor of abortion in terms of morality. Another survey was held in 2018 to get the views of American people regarding abortion being legal or illegal. The majority of people said that abortion should be legal. Some of them said that it should be made legal with some considerable restrictions, and others believe that it should be made legal without any particular restrictions because it is right of the women to decide, etc. Looking at these facts, it is evident that the U.S society is divided regarding the issue (LIPKA & GRAMLICH, 2019)

            The abortion can be viewed from different perspectives like few may look at it as an inhuman act. It is believed that during the pregnancy, a child is alive and abortion is like killing the child and taking his life without his consent. It is believed that the law of abortion can be abused by the men and women, who don’t want to take care of an innocent child; they may choose this path to stay away from their responsibility. Moreover, when women have sex out of a marriage and suddenly the couple decides that they don’t want this child, or they don’t have means to support a child, so they opt for the abortion. The opposing views are evident and this divide will continue like this because people have different opinions. The supporters of abortion say that it is the personal choice of people if they want a child or not, so they should be allowed to pursue their personal choice. If a couple has decided that they don’t want a child or they are not ready to take this responsibility, then giving birth to such a child is problematic as a couple is not ready, then it is problem for the child as he won’t get the proper attention. If a child is given birth to life, then he should be given full care and attention, and if caretakers are not ready to do that then there is no point to give birth as it even may ruin the life of a child. If a couple or even one of the persons is ready to take ownership and they are ready to take the responsibility, then abortion should be avoided, otherwise, abortion is the considerable choice (Chavez, 2019)

            It is important to understand that the U.S society is divided in Pro-Choice and Pro-Life movement. There are different states, with different opinions on the issue. For instance, recently the state of Alabama came up with restrictions on abortion, and it has been said it is the strictest law in the country. The law has restricted abortion in any given circumstances, even in the case of incest and rape. This law has given just one exception for abortion, where the life of a woman is in danger, and it is necessary to do abortion to save the life of the woman. Such kind of laws has also been passed in various other states as well, like Ohio, North Dakota, Missouri, Mississippi, Louisiana, Kentucky, Georgia, and Arkansas. The group in favor of Pro-life movement has been voicing their opinion against these laws, so they have taken it to the court. In recent facts & figures, it has been revealed that 12 states across the country have come up with 27 laws related to abortion in 2019. These statistics are showing a clear divide in the country that abortion is being opposed at so many levels. If things would continue like this, then it seems that anti-abortion laws would become more common and strict with the passage of time. It seems that such laws are becoming a long term policy so that when the issue is heard in the Supreme Court, it has valid arguments to support anti-abortion laws. It has been mentioned earlier that different states have already passed laws to restrict abortion, and a few other states are ready to do it. For instance, half the job is done to come up with anti-abortion laws in the state of South Carolina. Few other states such as West Virginia, Texas, Minnesota, Maryland, etc are also considering the ban on abortion. Majority of people are now turning their views in favor of the ban on abortion across the country (AL JAZEERA, 2019)

            The historic decision was made regarding abortion in 1973 in the case of Roe v. Wade, where abortion was decided to be legal. If this historic decision of the Supreme Court is kept in context, then it can be said that abortion is somewhat legal in all states of the United States. But states have come up with their own restrictions as well, and these laws are getting strict with the passage of time. The most restrictive anti-abortion law has been passed in the state of Alabama, and if other states will continue to follow Alabama, then anti-abortion laws will get strict in the whole country, and a group of people who are supporters of abortion, they are going to face a tough time. The majority of states are pushing towards antiabortion laws. The pro-life movement group would face difficulty in pursuing their views (AL JAZEERA, 2019). But there is also hope for the Pro-life group because a state like New York has passed the law, which protects abortion. They have followed the lead from the 1973 decision, and if any medical professional or doctor performs this function, he/she is also protected by the law. One of the other prime examples in this regard is Oregon State, which also protects abortion during the whole period of pregnancy. In Oregon, abortion is protected by the law, and it is only allowed when the life of a woman is in danger. There are other 9 states in the United States, which are protecting abortions or making their way to approving such laws so that abortion is considered legal (Chavez, 2019)

            It is a fact that the 1973 decision made by the Supreme Court was a landmark for this issue, but ever since, the people against it have been trying to overturn this law. The states have made their individual efforts to deal with this law, so they have put restrictions on abortion in so many ways. One great example that has already been mentioned in this regard is Alabama. The things are not only tough for the people to get an abortion as per law; they are even not provided ay state-level facility to do so. In Alabama, it is illegal for a Doctor to assist in an abortion, and if anyone does it, then he/she can face lifetime prison for this act. It shows the brutality of this act in Alabama. When the list of services provided by the state with regards to healthcare, abortion is not included in the list, which means that people even don’t have access to abortion, and they have to go to other states to do so, but everyone can’t afford it. The number of clinics providing the facility for abortion is very less in the United States. For instance, in around six U.S states, there is only a clinic providing the facility of abortion. There is one other fact to keep in mind that if any laws are passed against abortion, that does not mean to stop the number of abortion, rather they are just causing serious issues for the women seeking an abortion. When proper facility by law is not provided and people are in a difficult position, then even the lives of women can be in danger. These laws against abortion are getting discriminatory in nature because there are varieties of people, who can’t afford childbirth due to various reasons. For instance, African American Women, refugees, migrants as well as teenagers can’t afford to get so many days off from their work, or they don’t have enough means to deal with expenses of a child, so you can’t force them to do so (Amnesty International, 2019)

Conclusion of Should Abortion be Legal in the United States?

            After looking at various views, fact & figures, it can be said that abortion is an ongoing debate in the United States, and it looks that fight is not over yet, and things will remain complex in this regard. It is important to keep in mind the decision made by the Supreme Court in 1973 that abortion is legal in 50 states of the country, and that law should be given importance. There must be some logic behind this decision that allowed abortion, and the fact of the matter is that abortion is supported by the majority of people in the United States. If the majority section of society is in favor of abortion, and they don’t want it to be illegal, then abortion should be made legal in the country. The statistics have shown that the number of abortion has never stopped due to any restrictions, which means it is a reality of the society, so the government should face this reality and make it legal with some perspective. 

 References of Should Abortion be Legal in the United States?

AL JAZEERA. (2019). Which US states have recently passed abortion bans? Retrieved November 10, 2019, from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/05/states-passed-abortion-bans-190514142646289.html

Amnesty International. (2019). Abortion laws in the US – 10 things you need to know. Retrieved November 10, 2019, from https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/06/abortion-laws-in-the-us-10-things-you-need-to-know/

Chavez, N. (2019). The rising wave of abortion restrictions in America. Retrieved from https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/18/us/abortion-laws-states/index.html

LIPKA, M., & GRAMLICH, J. (2019). 5 facts about the abortion debate in America. Retrieved November 10, 2019, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/08/30/facts-about-abortion-debate-in-america/

PEW RESEARCH CENTER. (2019). Public Opinion on Abortion. Retrieved November 10, 2019, from https://www.pewforum.org/fact-sheet/public-opinion-on-abortion/