Argumentative essay: Abortion Should Remain Legal

 Abortion Should Remain Legal
The issue of abortion is a sensitive topic that touches on the choices a woman makes on
whether they want to nurture a pregnancy or terminate it once they realize they are expectant
(Weitz 172). A woman is the only person who can make the ultimate decision since it is her own
body accommodating the fetus. Pregnant women are the people experiencing the changes taking
place in their bodies as well as challenges that come with carrying a pregnancy (Ganatra et al.
176). They might have made the choice to engage in unprotected sex willingly despite being on
no contraceptive but they have the right to terminate the pregnancy at any time if they are
unwilling to carry it. When a woman realizes she is pregnant and she did not make plans on
having a child, then she can initiate an abortion at any stage of the pregnancy before five months.
 Most decisions on making abortion illegal are made on behalf of women who have no
idea how it feels to have unwanted pregnancy, having to carry it and bringing a child that will
suffer due to financial constraints (Ganatra et al. 156). Women have fought enough to have the
law realize that they are responsible for the decisions they make in relation to their bodies. In the
past, men have passed laws related to abortion, childbirth, adoption, amongst others without
taking into consideration those women who have a firsthand experience of everything taking
place in their bodies and who are in a better position to design with laws. It is high time when
women made major decisions that affect them both in the short-term and in the long-term as they
have their interests at heart (Norris et al. 54). They understand the implications of abortion if 
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legalized and they can take action to educate younger women on the importance of having
control over their bodies. A woman is in a better position to narrate the experience of having
birthed a child she did not want in the beginning as she would feel some kind of disconnection
from the child immediately after birth.
 It is also worth noting that not all women are in a position to handle more children than
they already have (Weitz 169). Whether married or unmarried, a woman should have the right to
control the number of children they will have to avoid bringing in children to the world to suffer.
Women who belong to the low class in terms of finances have enough problems facing them and
having one more child would destabilize their state of affairs. In addition, they will have more
burdens facing them and might not be in a position to provide a quality life for the children.
Despite their financial status, women in these social classes should be in a position to enjoy
sexual intercourse like the rest and have access to birth control (Norris et al. 49). Public health
facilities should provide abortion services at an affordable price. Private institutions can provide
the services but charge depending on the agreement between the management and patient.
Abortions should remain legal and not sought to be criminalized by the government. The
House recognizes that women can only terminate a pregnancy before it passes the 20th-week
gestation, however, it ignores the fact that it can be after the twentieth week that a doctor is able
to give a detailed medical report regarding deformities of the fetus and/or health risk to the
mother, opting to terminate the pregnancy. According to the article “House Passes 20-Week
Abortion Ban That Would Jail Providers for Up to 5 Years”, written by Gupta, Prachi, Dr. Anne
Davis, ‘Passing H.R. 36 would mean medical decisions move out of the hands of medical
professionals and pregnant people when abortion care is needed’. How is it fair to women, who
have fought and shed blood, sweat, and tears for their rights, to be told by the House it is now 
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illegal to have abortion when imminently required?—even when the woman is a victim of rape
or is posed with a prominent and lethal health risk to themselves and/or the child.
In conclusion, abortion is a sensitive topic and being pro-choice puts one in a position to
understand that women have the power and control over what happens to their bodies. Women
who do not have finances to raise a child, or are pregnant with a child with a deformity, or whose
health is at risk due to pregnancy must have the option to terminate pregnancy through safe
means. It gives them the power to exercise their right and do things as they please without having
to worry about their future. All in all, sometimes economic and social factors put pressure on
women to have abortions; often the decision to abort is a choice.
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Works Cited
Ganatra, Bela, et al. "From Concept to Measurement: Operationalizing WHO's Definition of
Unsafe Abortion." Bulletin of the World Health Organization, vol.92, no. 3, 2014, pp.
155-183.
Norris, Alison, et al. "Abortion Stigma: A Reconceptualization of Constituents,