The Big A

The big "A" ... The scarlet letter, a woman walks the streets feeling as though her letter is showing. Her heart is broken, but her mind is free. Should she feel shunned by society for what she has done? Or great relief knowing she did the right thing for herself? Today in society, this letter no longer stands for Adultery... It stands for Abortion. We all know that if Bill Clinton had participated in allowing a personal abortion instead of having a personal affair, he would've been burned at the stake by the public! But which is really worse??

When people think abortion, they think murder, the taking of an innocent soul and life. This is known as a conflict perspective theory: The view of a society is seen and accepted as a normal conflict socially. For Example: People tend to battle over things they don’t agree on, such as goals and values, concerning precious resources and are driven by power. In this case, they are fighting for the value of their personal morals and social beliefs.

In 1988 there was a survey taken in 27 different countries, asking why women seek abortion. The biggest reason they found was, that the women could not afford a child, or more children. That they were unable to support a child or simply wanted to wait for a later time in life, so they could afford to provide the proper care and schooling.

{Fact: More than 40% of all fertile women will have an abortion in their lifetime.} The most common type of women known to get an abortion is either younger, white, unmarried, poor, or they are over the age of 40. (ie.emedicineheath)

Before 1973, all abortions performed by doctors in the US were illegal unless they were proven dangerous to the health of the mother. In 1973 a woman named Jane Roe had found herself pregnant and single. She wanted the right to have a safe abortion done by a doctor, for she could not afford to travel to where it was legal. She fought for the rights of abortion for herself and all women in America. She won, giving women everywhere in America the power to decide for themselves. This was a huge part of women’s rights! They were given the power of the decision over their own bodies. Many see this as a bad thing but on the other side, it allowed pregnancy to be planned and a planned child can be a bigger gift to a woman. Although it's been 38 years now since the decision, it's still one of the biggest social debates on table today!

This has been a touchy subject weighing heavily on the minds of law makers and the public for decades. Abortion is going to happen whether it's legal or not. The difference lies in the methods used. In the medieval times, a mixture of herbs was given to fore the body to kill and expel the fetus. Unfortunately this method also often shut down the females organs causing death to the mother as well. Luckily technology has changed and such torture isn’t necessary. These days in areas where abortions are illegal in medical practice, or a teen is afraid to ask for help, they often choose to use much more drastic measures, such as hitting their stomach or ingesting harmful toxins. These methods usually don’t work and have devastating effects, physically and mentally to the mother and child (if they survive). Fact: About 1 in every 8 pregnancy related deaths in the world are caused by unsafe abortions. So when law makers consider making abortion illegal, are they saving a life? Or are they taking one?



http://www.mariestopes.org/documents/publications/cries_whispers_untold_stories_of_unsafe_abortion.pdf



References:

• http://www.afterabortion.com/social.html

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion#Safety

• http://www.emedicinehealth.com/abortion/article_em.htm

• http://www.mariestopes.org/documents/cries%20&%20whispers%20-%20untold%20stories%20of%20unsafe%20abortion.pdf