Abortion refers to premature termination of a pregnancy resulting in the death of the unborn child.
The act of abortion dated back into human history and was practiced in many traditional societies where methods such as the use of sharpened tools, botanical products, and exerting pressure on a pregnant woman’s abdomen were used to carry out an abortion. But due to advanced civilization, these traditional methods have gradually changed into modern and clinically safer methods. As a result, abortion has become an option for many women, especially those in the young age bracket who fall prey to unprotected sex due to the promiscuous nature of many societies today. Crude methods of abortion cannot, however, be ruled out because of the secrecy what many women want to maintain about the issue and, as a result, end up in backstreet abortion.
Several reasons lead to abortion, but the most common is unwanted pregnancies that often result from unprotected sex, incest, rape, or even failed contraceptive methods. In the case of incest or rape, for example, pregnancy may come at a time when the woman is least prepared to raise a child, and the fact that there is normally no relationship between father and mother at conception has often led to a popular view that it is unhealthy to bring such children into the world because of the social injustices they are likely to experience. Abortion can also be recommended by medical experts in special cases brought about by complications during pregnancy, and the urgency to save the life of the mother becomes a priority. Examples of such complications are severe hypertension, sickle cell anemia, and kidney disease, among others. Doctors may also recommend abortion in cases where abnormal development of an unborn child is detected to avoid the birth of a very abnormal child.
Abortion has become a very sensitive issue in society because of the impact it has on most societies, especially in matters relating to morality and public health.
Laws regarding abortion are varied in different societies depending on the approach of such societies towards the issue and different methods of approach are normally determined by a society’s moral standing concerning abortion as well as the religious and cultural aspects. In the USA and Canada, for example, abortion has been legalized. In many societies, abortion is, however, regarded as a social evil that should be done away with, and anti-abortion campaigns are very common in many societies worldwide, and most societies hold no other view other than that abortion is extremely dangerous to the person on whom it is carried out and to society at large and that it is also morally wrong.
This is because abortion has been a leading cause of death to many young women worldwide, an issue that has raised great concern from both anti-abortionists and those seeking its legalization.
Pro-abortionists argue that legalizing abortion will lead to better accessibility of clinically induced abortion as well as reducing deaths that result from backstreet abortions. They also argue that legalizing abortion will offer a solution to rape and incest victims who should not be forced into premature family life. But legalizing abortion is not making clinically induced abortion affordable to all who wish to have an abortion, and backstreet abortion still remains an option.
In societies fighting against abortion, legalizing it may cause serious setbacks to campaigns against abortion. This is because of the likelihood that many women might misunderstand the whole legalization issue and use abortion as a method of contraception or an easy way out for any unwanted pregnancy. Legalizing abortion could also lead to increased rates of promiscuity in society, leading to worse social problems such as increased rates of sexually transmitted illnesses and HIV AIDS. The highest percentage of abortions are avoidable as they result from pregnancies incurred through irresponsible sex, and legalizing abortion could mean that society is therefore allowed to kill. This might lead to a situation where people might start pushing for the legalization of other social evils such as murder. Abortions carried out on medical grounds are very minimal in most societies, and legalizing abortion will lead to the decline of morality in societies where it is already so much on the decline. There is a reduction of the value attached to human life, and the right to life cannot be respected anymore.
Abortion is cruel and inhuman and has been described as the worst kind of injustice that can be carried out against an unborn child. It takes advantage of the helpless and defenseless nature of an unborn child and denies them the most fundamental human right, the right to live. Through abortion, such a child is also denied a chance to grow up and become somebody in society, and through the process, societies have lost great men and women. From a religious or moral point of view, any woman who has procured an abortion except on medical grounds appears very inhuman, selfish, and lacking a moral standing. In practically every human society, the right to life is considered natural and God-given, and there is a general feeling that every human being must have a chance to it. Due to this feeling, a woman who has aborted is normally considered a murderer. Considering that the persons procuring abortion have enjoyed the right to live, it is only very fair and natural that they extend this right to the unborn children.
Abortion is a risky act to the health of a woman as it may lead to complications such as excessive bleeding resulting in anemia or death and barrenness.
In the case of barrenness, a woman lives the rest of her life under psychological torture, always thinking about the child they could have had and blaming herself for her current predicament. To avoid such type complications, there is always the option of giving birth to a child and giving it up for adoption. This will reduce the risk of death, sickness, and childlessness.
But outlawing abortion could lead to the birth of very many unwanted children in a society where every child born should feel wanted. Such children may, in turn, fall victim to child abuse and neglect because of a lack of proper relationship between them and their mothers. Outlawing abortion is also discriminatory to women from the low-income social group because as long as they are unable to seek proper medical attention, they will always resort to crude and illegal methods of abortion. Although abortion is not any less traumatizing than rape or incest, it could be a good alternative for those victims who are not ready to give birth to unwanted children.
Laws against abortion, especially in developing nations, have resulted in the death of very many women, especially those in the young age bracket. This is because the failure to legalize abortion has not stopped women from doing it, and backstreet methods that lead to the deaths of very many of them have remained an alternative to clinically procured abortion. Even if abortion cannot be recommended as a birth control method, it should be made available as an option for unwanted pregnancies in very young girls who are often victims of rape and incest and are not yet mature to raise a family.
Legal abortion helps to protect the lives of women exposed to the danger of death from complications related to pregnancy and childbearing.
There are several possible solutions to the issue of abortion, and although these may vary in different societies, the need to educate women on the importance of using contraception is of notable importance. Contraception will act as a control method against unwanted pregnancies that are a major cause of abortions. Women should be educated on the importance of responsible sex, the dangers and traumatic effects of abortion, and possible alternatives such as adoption, and perhaps society should also take more responsibility for instilling moral values on its members, especially young women. In such a way, the root cause of abortion can be addressed instead of addressing the act itself.
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