Keeping a Basic Human Right: Should Abortion Be Legal?

Since President Donald J. Trump was elected, abortion bans seem closer to becoming a reality. To date, around 1,300 women in the United States have been prosecuted for an abortion-related crime. After the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a court case that allowed the continuance of abortion, by Trump’s Supreme Court during his first presidency, many women have been arrested. Legalizing abortion remains absolutely necessary.

Children can be a blessing, but having them early can significantly impact a person’s life. Teenage pregnancies are not uncommon—around 21 million girls within the age range of 15 to 19 in developing countries become pregnant. These young parents would have to deal with their school life and their child, which could negatively impact their education and create financial instability, causing an increasing amount of stress. For those who are currently pregnant, 16% have pregnancy-related stress, and 5% have major depression. Others might not have enough money or resources to support their baby. Most women interviewed by the Urban Institute believe that an unplanned birth would negatively affect their education, job, income, and mental health. They would have to spend time caring for their child instead of going to school or, sometimes, going to their job. Raising a child is both costly and demanding. It costs around $19,000 just to give birth to the child, but buying food and toys would be even more expensive.

Additionally, abortion gives a significant amount of freedom. It gives couples the choice to decide when or if they want to start a family. The ability to have an abortion enables them to choose where they want to go with their lives. In many interviews, women have shown that choosing to abort or keep was a very personal issue that required enough time to decide. Often, a decision is not made until around two months later. Time is essential to consider the consequences of both decisions. 

Further, a restricting or criminalizing abortion causes unnecessary pain and suffering. The woman who had an abortion and anyone who helped them could get arrested for about 12 years. Around 42 million women with unplanned births choose abortion, and around 20 million of them choose to get an abortion in an unsafe manner. About 68,000 women die annually from these unsafe abortions. Abortion was initially banned because it was unsafe, but now, abortion methods have become safe, yet in some places, it remains illegal. At first, it was to protect the mother, but now, the fetus’s life is being put above the mother’s. Many abortion bans force the mother to carry the fetus to term, even if they could die themselves.

The ban on abortion does more harm than good. An unplanned or unwanted birth could waste resources and create financial instability, and the choice to have an abortion or to keep the child is a personal decision, which would give the person a chance to decide what they are going to do. Without abortion, it lessens the choice, and the penalty for having an illegal abortion is incredibly disproportionate. Unfortunately, with the way this country seems to be going, it is likely that more states will limit rather than expand or preserve abortion access.