The Ethics of Abortion Case

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The Ethics of Abortion

The 1973 landmark court ruling on the case dubbed Roe vs. Wade defined the direction of debates over abortion to this day. However, the debate on the ethics and morality of abortion has by far remained inconclusive. The main reason behind this quagmire is the multi-faceted nature of the ethics of abortion that spans from religion, law, and medicine to the society and cultures. Whereas the proponents of abortion argue on the basis of the right to choice and the fact that a fetus is not a human being, the opponents contend that morality cannot be defined by majority rule and that life is sacred.  Consequently, the major approaches (legal, religious, medical, societal, and cultural) oppose abortion albeit with specific exceptions. It is important to note, however, that the trivialities of abortion arise from the said exceptions, which are relative to an individual’s belief; a factor which is explicitly diverse.

Abortion is as practical as it is trivial. According to the United States Census Bureau, the national figures on abortion as at 2011 were as follows: 1.06 out of the 2.12 million pregnancies were aborted. This is half of all the pregnancies reported. Illegal abortions account for 31 percent of this figure or four out of every ten pregnancies (Bureau). The initial debate over whether abortion should be legalized and accepted by the society was centered on morality, saving the lives of unborn children and the lives of the mothers who die of botched up abortion procedures. However, since the legalization of abortion during the first trimester, the debate seems to have shifted to the morality of the act.

Life is a fundamental human right and as such deserves to be protected at all cost. However, what is the practical implication of protecting that life only to be born into the misery of no parental care? Most people who take the decision to abort are guided by their lack of readiness to take care of the child once it’s born. The proponents argue their stand on the basis of the protection of one right leading to the denial or deficiency of others, such as food, shelter and clothing. However, I am of the idea of optimism; keeping the pregnancy regardless of the odds that surround it.