Gonzales V. Carhart Case Study

Imagine a young woman living life to the fullest and loving it, when suddenly, she is raped. Out of shame, she keeps this hard truth a secret and to make matters worse, she finds out she is pregnant. She feels as if having an abortion is her only option, so she gets the abortion. Afterward, she feels relieved because she is not carrying the rapists’ baby anymore; however that relief does not last long. Her ears meet the sharp cursing of people protesting, calling her a monster. She rushes past the people to hurry back home, ashamed of what she did. The only trace of her left behind that next day is a note that reads “Murder was never the intent, only the riddance of a horrible memory. He already took part of me that night, and I will not let
Carhart case in 2007 was significant to the way abortions were to be performed. The case established the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act which banned D&E procedures and regulated abortions. The procedure was the dilatation of a woman’s cervix followed by the extraction of an unborn baby. (Kennedy 1) This was viewed as an inhumane way to abort a child, so the act was made to ease the mind of these people. Doctors that continued to perform the procedure knowingly would be punished in the form of their license being revoked and jail time. (Kennedy 8) This ensured the security of the Partial- Birth Abortion Ban Act and prevention of inhumane procedures. Also, the act proposed that instead of the D&E procedures, the unborn baby is eliminated prior to the procedure. (Kennedy 2) Instead of the unborn baby being “alive” it would ideally not feel the procedure being performed. There are various procedures that could be performed to eliminate an unborn baby depending on the term of the baby. With that in mind, having an abortion isn’t violating an unborn fetus’ human rights since these procedures are chosen when the baby isn’t fully
As a reflection, the Gonzales v. Carhart case in 2007 had a significant impact on the way abortions were performed. It established the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act which prevented D&E procedures, the dilation of a woman’s cervix followed by the extraction of the unborn child. (Kennedy 2) All doctors that knowingly performed the procedure were punished through the form of jail time or their license being revoked (Kennedy 8) since this was looked upon as inhumane. Also, making abortions illegal directly violates women’s human rights according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The document states that slavery and servitude is a violation of the rights (UN General Assembly 1948), so the denial of abortions violates women’s human rights because their bodies are slaves to the government and they have to serve the government with their body, meaning continuing with an unwanted pregnancy. The document also states that everyone should feel secure and when this is not the case for the women that attempt to be an abortion; they fear for their life. Nevertheless, legalizing abortions is the best choice for the nation because it comes with benefits. Sadly, before abortions, they were many births that resulted in children being sent to orphanages since