Abortion in Usa

Abortion was first legalized in the United States on January 22, 1973. Until the early 1970s, about two-thirds of the states banned abortion except when it was necessary to save a mother's life. The other states had similar laws, but allowed for a few other instances when women could seek an abortion. These instances included cases in which the pregnancy was the result of incest or rape. In 1973, due to the landmark case of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that women have a fundamental right to have an abortion (Specific Issues in Health Care, 2004).

However, the topic of abortion is a highly controversial issue in today's society. There are various views that are held concerning the morality of this procedure. Some people feel that abortion is simply cold-blooded murder, because in their opinion a zygote is a human being from the moment of conception. If a person does not know for sure when a fetus becomes a person, individuals who are anti abortion think that the chance of killing something that may be a form of life should not be taken. They state that the Bible tells us that God loves His children and knows the smallest details about each person, "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered" (Matthew 10:30).

However, others would argue that the zygote is merely insubstantial matter. It is entirely dependent on its mother's body for survival and it has no real life of its own. It is for this reason that pro-choice individuals support the woman's choice to undergo abortion. They believe that something that is not yet a human should not be entitled to the rights of one (Messerli, 2010).

In contrast to pro-choice movement, the individuals who support the idea of pro-life often refer to abortion as, ' the intentional killing of unborn babies.' They believe this act is committed only by those who do not appreciate the value of human life. They feel that an alternative to abortion would be adoption. They also support the belief that just because a mother is not capable of looking after her child, the killing of it cannot be justified. If she truly had the child's best interests in mind, she would give it the chance to live (Messerli, 2010).

To counteract this, proponents of the pro choice movement, including myself bring into account the Women's Rights Movement that began in 1848. This movement, as well as the case of Roe v Wade gave women many more rights than they recently had. Among these rights was the ability to have total control over their body. Pro choice individuals argue that due to this, a woman also has control over what is in their body and because of this abortion should be acceptable. If a baby is really just a part of the mother's body, it should be her choice whether or not she keeps it (Huttenlocker, 2007).

These individuals would also argue that although it seems that mothers who chose abortion do not appreciate the value of human life, in many cases it is quite the opposite. In cases involving rape or underage pregnancies, potential