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Annually, 40-50 million abortions are preformed worldwide. In 2004, a US study was done to determine the reasoning behind abortions. Reasons for abortion included:
<0.5% - Victim of rape
3% - Fetal health problems
4% - Physical health problems
4% - Would interfere with education or career
7% - Not mature enough to raise a child
8% - Don’t want to be a single mother
19% - Done having children
23% - Can’t afford baby
25% - Not ready for a child
6% - Other
EXISTENCE OF ABORTION, ITS DIFFERING VIEWS, AND ITS RESISTANCE IN HISTORY
The first historical record of abortion is dated back to the times of ancient Egypt 1550 BCE. Documented in a medical text called the Ebers Papyrus., it involves a description of how pregnancies were once terminated. This document describes a plant fiber tampon, covered in a combination of natural ingredients of honey and crushed dates functioned to induce abortion in ancient times. Other natural elements were substantial to the progress of abortion in history. Plants were a common factor in traditional methods of abortion throughout many cultures and societies. In the dark times of slavery, enslaved women would consume various parts of a flos pavanis, or a peacock flower, such as the seeds or leaves to cause a miscarriage. The use of plants as abortifacients are still present in recent times. In 2006, it was recorded that Tanzania women who lived in rural areas resorted to species of plants as a method of inducing abortion due to a lack of sufficient resources of aid towards pregnancy and its termination.
Since the introduction of the concept of abortion, differing societies conjured differing beliefs regarding the morality of abortion. In ancient Greece and Rome, abortion was widely accepted. They believed a fetus was not yet formed until over two months for a male and nearly three for a female. Although in other countries, usually influenced by religion, abortion would be considered illegal and enough to receive death as punishment in some societies. In the biblical era, abortion is not explicitly mentioned in the bible, whereas a miscarriage is. In the case of a miscarriage, the man and lost child are given more consideration than the woman. The morals and beliefs of Western society heavily rely on statements and perspectives of the bible. Despite the bible never explicitly mentioning abortion, many followers of Christ resort to scriptures in the bible to retrieve evidence defending the argument of the unethical nature of abortions. America is notably a western society that widely views abortion negatively despite its commonness in American history.
In the 17th and 19th centuries of Western society, large governmental resistance against abortion became extensively prominent. Laws were implemented during America’s colonial era to criminalize abortion. The procedure for an abortion was to only be performed if the mother’s life was at risk. Not until 1973 would it become legal in Roe V Wade, and even with the legalization of abortion, the mass amount of resistance would not cease to exist. Driving past planned parenthood is proof enough of the passionate campaign of pro-lifers to put abortions to a permanent halt. Certain cities, mainly in states of the southern portion of America, managed to outlaw abortion completely with the sole condition of life of the mother being at risk. In nearly all countries in South America and Africa, abortion is still illegal, but it can be done on request for few conditions. Since most countries in these two continents have a plethora of other social issues, the consideration of anything regarding abortion will likely not be taken into account by their governments.
A PATH WITH LACK OF CHOICES AND OPTIONS
Absence of Education
Out of the 50 states, only 24 states mandate sex education, and 34 mandate HIV education in schools. The decision of this curriculum is ultimately to be decided to be taught by the district. Since sex education is commonly not already a part of any curriculum, it is much more difficult for districts to obtain this lesson. California previously had sex education as an optional lesson in the health curriculum up until recently. In 2014, the CDC discovered less than half of high schools are taught all 16 topics they recommend to be taught regarding sex education. Teenagers lack the resources to gain such beneficial information; 43% of females and 57% lacked information about birth control upon having sexual intercourse for the first time. The act of abstinence is focused more in schools, not because it ensures no sexual encounters, but because it is easier to be taught and carried out as opposed to introducing the concept of birth contraceptives.
Unwanted Pregnancy
As the culture of intercourse is no longer solely a means of reproduction and has transformed into completely different matter, along with the lack of education concerning intercourse and many other disheartening factors, pregnancy has become all the more common and unintended. The latest documentation of unwanted or unintended pregnancies was recorded to be 45% out of 6 million pregnancies in the United States. Half of all these pregnancies although are resolved with an abortion. The causes of unwanted pregnancies are extremely wide, making the risk of pregnancy higher. In addition, there are a wide range of consequences for these pregnancies. Children born from an unwanted pregnancy experience a life of great risk of potential suffering. The parents who carried out an unwanted pregnancy are at a greater risk of either divorce or separation due to the child. The parent(s) of the child will also likely lack the essential qualities of a parent to successfully raise the child. The lack of care the child may experience will certainly affect their life mentally and physically in the future. Unplanned children have a part in the contribution of poverty in the US. Not only does this affect the immediate family, but those around poverty as well.
Abortion Has Always and Will Exist
There is a large concentration of advantages for abortion both internally and externally, which is why it must stay legal. It is far more unethical to force someone to carry out a pregnancy than it is to terminate it. About 135,000 children are not adopted in the US alone. There are 153 million children who are orphans worldwide. In the times where abortion was criminalized, women found ways to perform an abortion on themselves, which was almost always a fatal situation for the woman. If abortion is made illegal, if planned parenthood is dismissed, it will not stop abortions. All it will do is increase mortality rates among pregnant women.
Sources
“BBC - Ethics - Abortion: Historical Attitudes to Abortion.” BBC, www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/legal/history_1.shtml. Accessed 10 Aug. 2021.
Head, Tom. “When Did Abortion Begin?” ThoughtCo, 28 Aug. 2020, www.thoughtco.com/when-did-abortion-begin-721090.
Rasch, Vibeke. “Unsafe Abortion in Rural Tanzania – the Use of Traditional Medicine from a Patient and a Provider Perspective.” BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 19 Dec. 2014, bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12884-014-0419-6.
“Research Guides: Black Botany: The Nature of Black Experience: The Peacock Flower and Reproduction.” NYBG, libguides.nybg.org/c.php?g=1003078&p=7264405. Accessed 10 Aug. 2021.
“State of Sex Education in USA | Health Education in Schools.” Planned Parenthood, www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/for-educators/whats-state-sex-education-us. Accessed 6 Aug. 2021.
“U.S. Abortion Statistics.” Abort73, abort73.com/abortion_facts/us_abortion_statistics. Accessed 7 Aug. 2021.
Weese, Karen. “Almost Half of Pregnancies in the U.S. Are Unplanned. There’s a Surprisingly Easy Way to Change That.” Washington Post, 1 May 2018, www.washingtonpost.com/news/posteverything/wp/2018/05/01/almost-half-of-pregnancies-in-the-u-s-are-unplanned-theres-a-surprisingly-easy-way-to-change-that.
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