Abortion: a Woman's Right in the First Trimester
Abortion: A Woman 's Right in the First Trimester
The argument of abortion has split the nation for decades. There are two main sides, pro-life and pro-choice, and both make strong arguments to support their decisions. The two major debates are weather abortion is murder because a fetus is a human life or weather a woman has a right to choose what happens to her body. Abortion on demand should be a woman 's unalienable right during the first trimester of pregnancy only, but after that point the developing embryo has the right to life. "This middle ground is what a lot of people believe these days, the right for a woman to choose in the first trimester only" (Baird 179).
In countries where abortion is not tolerated women continue to seek out and have abortions performed from unqualified abortionists. These individuals risk putting these women through painful and potentially fatal tortures in an attempt to abort their child. Woman would try anything to end their pregnancies. Many women would introduce caustic detergent substances into themselves, producing major burns of the vaginal wall and systemic poisoning. Others would insert a tablet of potassium which led to serious lesions. Number of women tried to dislodge their pregnancies by introducing knitting needles, coat hangers, or other metal or wooden objects into their uteruses. Some women threw themselves down flights of stairs, and some pumped air into the uterus by means of a small pump used to blow up bicycle tires. Illegal abortions were performed by people with no or little medical knowledge, in back rooms, in a non-hygienic environment. All this led to tremendous number of deaths but did not stop the abortions.
The reasons why women have abortions vary. It may be a case of rape, physical or psychological condition. A choice must be available to avoid damage to the child, to safeguard the emotional and physical health of women, and to prevent the birth of unwanted children. Preservation of life
The argument of abortion has split the nation for decades. There are two main sides, pro-life and pro-choice, and both make strong arguments to support their decisions. The two major debates are weather abortion is murder because a fetus is a human life or weather a woman has a right to choose what happens to her body. Abortion on demand should be a woman 's unalienable right during the first trimester of pregnancy only, but after that point the developing embryo has the right to life. "This middle ground is what a lot of people believe these days, the right for a woman to choose in the first trimester only" (Baird 179).
In countries where abortion is not tolerated women continue to seek out and have abortions performed from unqualified abortionists. These individuals risk putting these women through painful and potentially fatal tortures in an attempt to abort their child. Woman would try anything to end their pregnancies. Many women would introduce caustic detergent substances into themselves, producing major burns of the vaginal wall and systemic poisoning. Others would insert a tablet of potassium which led to serious lesions. Number of women tried to dislodge their pregnancies by introducing knitting needles, coat hangers, or other metal or wooden objects into their uteruses. Some women threw themselves down flights of stairs, and some pumped air into the uterus by means of a small pump used to blow up bicycle tires. Illegal abortions were performed by people with no or little medical knowledge, in back rooms, in a non-hygienic environment. All this led to tremendous number of deaths but did not stop the abortions.
The reasons why women have abortions vary. It may be a case of rape, physical or psychological condition. A choice must be available to avoid damage to the child, to safeguard the emotional and physical health of women, and to prevent the birth of unwanted children. Preservation of life
Cited: Baird, Robert M. and Stuart E. Rosenbaum. The Ethics of Abortion. New York: Prometheus Books, 2001. Mason, J K, and R A McCall Smith. Law and Medical Ethics. London: Butterworths, 1994. Reiman, Jeffrey. Abortion and the Ways We Value Human Life. Boston: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC., 1999.