Abortion: The Right to Kill? - Chris Schaben

The teenage girl walks into the clinic in California, where parental consent isn’t needed to get an abortion. Now her parents, boyfriend, friends, or family members will never know about any of this. She will always have this moment on her conscience and will hide this secret murder for the rest of her life. Meanwhile, a few miles away, a man is consoling his crying wife. She had just received a phone call from her doctor, who had told her that she would never be able to give birth. Now they will be put on a waiting list until a child is available for them to adopt. And thanks to the teenage girl’s choice, the couple may have to wait even longer. The teenage girl gets to make a choice, but what about the childless couple and the aborted baby. Do they get a choice? Abortion is immoral and a form of murder. Why do women get to make the choice of whether an unborn baby lives or dies? Why do women get this right to kill?

The right to an abortion was stated to be constitutional by the Supreme Court in the 1973 case Roe v. Wade. The Court held that a woman may abort her pregnancy for any reason, up until the "point at which the fetus becomes viable.” The Court defined viability as the potential "to live outside the mother's womb.” However, isn’t the right to life our primary right in the United States? People that say abortion is a right are not thinking about the rights of the unborn child. A fetus should get the same right to be born and have a life like everybody else. That right to be born overrides the mother’s right to make decisions about her body since her decision to abort affects the life of another human being, the unborn baby.

Abortion occurs across America way too often! According to statistics, almost half, 43%, of American women will have an abortion in their lifetime! Also, 1.4 million women have abortions every year. This means that 1.4 million humans are killed. One of those 1.4 million could have done something great in the world if only they had been born! So, why do women get abortions? In a 1987 survey, “76 percent said they were concerned about how having a baby could change their lives, and 51 percent had problems with a relationship or wanted to avoid single parenthood. Thirteen percent cited health of the fetus; 7 percent the health of the mother; 1 percent rape or incest."

The so-called pro-choice supporters will say that abortion is alright because the fetus in not technically a human being until a certain point. This is a lie! Life begins at conception. People that say life begins at birth are trying to fool themselves and others into condoning an immoral act. The fact that a fetus is human is also backed up by scientists and medical authorities across the country. They say that a fetus has 46 distinct human chromosomes just like everybody else! From conception, the gender, eye color, and hair color of the new human are already determined!

The phrase “pro-choice” is very strange in a way. Why should women get a choice to kill an innocent human being? They’ve already made the choice of having sex. All women know that choosing to have sex could result in pregnancy. Of course, there are situations when women feel it is a necessity to get an abortion. These tough situations include rape and incest, teenage pregnancies, and deformed or handicapped children. As William P. Sanders points out, however, “we must remember the child is still an innocent human being who through no fault of his own was conceived." In other words, even though the child may seem undesirable for certain reasons, it is not the child’s fault that they exist. Take the situation of rape, for instance. Obviously, the woman didn’t choose to get pregnant, but just because a rapist impregnated a woman doesn’t mean the child will grow up to be a rapist.

For all women who simply can’t handle raising a child, there is a much better, alternative answer. There is always a couple looking to adopt. “In 1999 there were 2 million couples seeking to adopt. Unfortunately, there are only 30,000 children available for placement each year.” Another fact is that the number of infertile couples in the United States exceeds 1 million. Remember that there are 1.4 million abortions each year, which drastically reduces the chance of these infertile couples from receiving a child. If women become pregnant but don’t want the baby, they should just remember that there are women who can never have children of their own. “Over 1 million teenagers become pregnant each year. Over 40% choose abortion and only 2 – 3% place their child for adoption." These teenage girls and other women who choose abortion over adoption don’t want to go through the 9 months of carrying a child. Women who think this way are in quite selfish in a way. Why can’t a woman give a few short months of her life to give an infertile couple and an adopted child a lifetime of happiness?

A sharp pair of surgical scissors is inserted into the fetus’s skull and a suction tube is used to remove the brain matter. The fetus’s skull is then collapsed and the fetus is then removed from the woman completley. This is not something from a horror movie. This is an actual method of surgical abortion known as IDE. This process is actually one of the less common methods of abortion, but the thought of this happening should make anybody want to throw up. According to statistics, “nearly 90% of abortions take place within the first 13 weeks, commonly known as the first trimester." This shouldn’t matter though. No matter what stage a pregnancy is terminated, a human is being killed. Abortion is immoral and a form of murder. Give an unborn child the right to life. It’s a right no woman should be able to take away! So, who's with me? Do you feel that an innocent life is being destroyed through abortion? Or do you believe that it's a woman's choice of who lives or dies?