Abortion is an emotional topic in America right now.
Whether you are upset about your healthcare rights being taken away or horrified that people would even consider getting an abortion, it is a conversation that is hijacked by emotions from either side of the spectrum.
I fall on the side that is upset about my healthcare rights being taken away.
When I heard that our judges of the highest court were considering overturning Roe v. Wade, my heart dropped.
A Representation of Congress Overturning Roe v. Wade
This reaction was not just for myself, who was concerned about my access to birth control and whether I was going to have access to my endometriosis specialist physicians. This was for the 10-year-old in Ohio who was denied access to an abortion after being raped. This was for the mother of three who could not afford another child. This was for the expecting mother who learned she had an ectopic pregnancy, with no other choice but to terminate the pregnancy. This was for the millions of people in America with a uterus who had the fate of their healthcare in the hands of nine justices.
I am not trying to bash anyone’s belief that abortion is wrong. I grew up in a Catholic school and understand why abortions might not align with someone’s moral values. However, I do take issue with trying to inflict your religious beliefs onto another individual. The majority of people who are against abortions reason so in the name of religion. However, this goes against what our founding fathers stood for and is a factor in why they left England in the first place: the separation of church and state. It is laid out clearly in the first clause of the Bill of Rights, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”
I also know the dramatization of abortions in these settings, such as a catholic school. They never tell you that nine out of ten abortions done in high-income countries, like America, happen in the first twelve weeks. They never tell you that over half of all abortions are done by a pill. They never tell you that 54% of abortion recipients in America are women of some kind of Christian denomination. The narrative they put out is this horrible, bloody mess where they put the fetus through maximum pain and suffering. While there are forms of abortion that are more invasive than just the pill, they are not as common, especially as technology continues to develop, and they are not nearly as traumatic as they are advertised.
Pro-Life Individuals Protesting Against Abortions
I know women who have had abortions for a multitude of reasons. I also know when who decided to follow through with a pregnancy that was not a perfect time in their life, whether that be their age or financial situation.
All of these women had one common factor to their decision to keep or terminate their pregnancies: they had a choice.
In a country that is considered to be “the land of the free,” every human being deserves a choice in their bodily autonomy.
Abortion is such a polarizing topic, and I am always interested to hear people’s stance on it. I’m kind of in the gray area because my faith conflicts with pro-choice; however, I also don’t think it’s reasonable to force others to agree with my position. At this point, I would say that I personally wouldn’t consider an abortion (there are extremely special circumstances though) for myself, but it doesn’t feel right to take that right away from others.
Even though I also grew up in a religious environment and do value all life, I have to agree with the points you are making. As a woman, and a citizen of the US, I know that I personally would not want to be forced to give birth to a child – especially if that will cause health problems for myself or might kill me, the child is a result of a sexual assault, I am not financially prepared to take care of it, and so much more. I do not want to sacrifice my well being, as well as my potential child’s, just so that people can enforce their religious beliefs on the general population. I have also found that the majority of people who are anti-abortion and/or pro-life also stand silent during school shootings or any other type of gun slaughter, which makes me question what lives do they actually value. Anyways, I also believe that the right to an abortion is fundamental in reproductive rights, as well as general healthcare. There are so many different scenarios and reasons why people get abortions, and it is important that they are respected just as much as any other medical patient. Thanks for such a well written post, it was very engaging and interesting to read!
I did not grow up in a particularly religious environment, but controversial topics like abortion were always taught to be taboo. However, I quickly formed my own opinions. I like that you are not shying away from controversial topics, despite the fact that people might not agree with your opinions. I personally am pro-choice, because I personally would not want to be forced to give birth when I did not want to. I feel like being the ‘land of the free’ should mean making your own decisions. Great article!
This is such a deeply personal topic related to the direction of someone’s life, and their future, that it is hard to have an open discussion about it. Although I honestly do not know what I would do if I found myself in this situation, I certainly support the rights of everyone to have autonomy over their body. It is hard to imagine the depth of someone else’s life, much less make decisions on their behalf, and I don’t believe that the government has a right to decide what happens to you or your body in this case. I am glad you wrote about this; it deserves to be said. Thank you.
Abortion is such a controversial topic in the US. Coming from Europe I never thought I’d have to fight for the right to have a choice. I 100% agree with you that it is important to let everyone express their opinions, and there will always be things we don’t agree on, but religion should not be a valid factor in this argument, per as you mentioned– the separation of church and state. This topic is discussed so much, but also not enough. I can’t comprehend that this decision was down to 9 judges. The system needs a drastic change.