ABORTION

Abortion

Abortion

Introduction

Stripped of moral, religious, and legal considerations, abortion is simply the termination of a pregnancy. There is nothing simple about abortion or at least, debates over abortion, and the contest over whether and when abortion should be legally permissible has been at the center of the so-called culture war. The abortion debate has shaped party politics, electoral campaigns, legislative agendas, and judicial appointments. It has led to political rallies, protests, blockades, bombings, and the killing of abortion providers. The lasting conflict and the reach of the controversy into debates over stem cell research, sex education, fertility treatments, population control, and more ensure that abortion will remain newsworthy. An important aspect of abortion is still debatable that “Should abortion be legal or it should be banned?”

Figure 1.1

Should Abortion be Legal?

Argument

From some moral, religious, and cultural vantage points, abortion is murder. Others view abortion as a fundamental right that, whether grounded in privacy, liberty, equality, or autonomy, must remain unfettered to ensure full emancipation. For many, the morality of abortion depends on when during pregnancy it is performed or what an individual's reasons are for undergoing the procedure. Perspectives about abortion are not merely contrasting; they are frequently impassioned and irreconcilable. Seeking compromise among those who stand on opposite sides of the abortion spectrum can appear futile, and encouraging tolerance of diverse viewpoints may, in the context of this debate, seem unprincipled. (Rose, 2006)

Still, a vast number of women do terminate their pregnancies, abortion is legally permissible in many countries, and the worldwide trend is toward liberalizing restrictions on the procedure. This trend notwithstanding, regulation of abortion has become more restrictive in the United States over the past 20 years.

While the contest over abortion continues to be waged on many fronts and in numerous venues, the U.S. Supreme Court has been pivotal in defining the terms and contours of the debate. After providing a general overview of the incidence of abortion, this entry will outline how the Supreme Court has interpreted the U.S. Constitution as both granting a right to choose abortion and permitting considerable government latitude in regulating this right. (Rose, 2006)

One of the biggest opponents of abortion has been those of religious faith, particularly the Catholic Church, which argues that abortion is murder, so much so that some Catholic leaders oppose an exception to preserve a mother's health or life. There is some correlation between religious views on abortion and women who have them. In the United States, Catholic women have the same rate of abortions as women from the general public. Protestants have about 69 percent as many abortions as the general public, and born-again Christians have 39 percent as many. This religious deterrent also isn't consistent. For instance, it doesn't apply in China, with its one-child-per-family policy; nor in India, where abortion is strongly encouraged for anyone who has more than one child. (McDonagh, 1996)

The issue is further complicated in the United States simply by dint of its primarily private health care ...