Abortion and Why it should not be Illegal.

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The concept of abortion has been one of the primary and controversial matters as it has been the leading cause of substantial debates for a long time. It is with no doubt that people have distinct points of view on whether abortion should be illegal or not. These distinct perspectives have further complicated the topic of abortion, given the fact that those who are against legalizing abortion are more concerned about the new life. On the other hand, individuals who support legalizing abortion are more concerned about the welfare of the woman who is pregnant, and under different circumstances, she is not mentally, physically, or emotionally ready to care for a baby. There are different perspectives on why abortion should not be illegal. The primary central populations of concerns are rape victims and individuals who are victims of unplanned pregnancies. These two populations are more likely to be affected by different angles if abortion is illegal. Abortion should be legal to rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies to ensure their mental well-being, minimize the number of unsafe abortions, and reduce the likelihood of these women falling under the poverty line and becoming drug addicts.

Abortion should be made legal for rape victims and individuals with unwanted pregnancies to ensure their mental well-being. Firstly, it is highly critical to acknowledge the fact that women who get raped are victims in their circumstance. Rape is not only physical abuse but also a mental abuse situation. A majority of rape victims frequently undergo psychological issues such as depression. Therefore, it would be morally wrong to force a rape victim to keep a pregnancy that resulted from her rape. Pregnancy will only elevate their anxiety and depression since it will be a burden that reminds them of the sexual assault that they went through. In some cases, pregnant rape victims end up committing suicide if denied the chance to have an abortion. Therefore, it is only reasonable that rape victims are allowed to have an abortion as this would ensure that they recover both physically, and mentally.

Secondly, in most cases, unplanned pregnancies are a result of failed pregnancy prevention methods such as condoms which are not 100% effective. When women state that she has an unplanned pregnancy, it does not necessarily mean that she simply does not want the baby. These women might not be ready emotionally, mentally, or financially to take care of a baby. Forcing these women to keep their pregnancies to term will only assert pressure on their mental health, and this might result in depression. Henceforth, to ensure a healthy mental well being for rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies, abortion should not be illegal (Bridges, 2013).

Illegalizing abortion does not stop abortion, and it only forces rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies to resort to unsafe abortions from unqualified medical personnel. Unsafe abortion is dangerous as it has adverse effects. A majority of rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies will go out of their way to ensure that they have an unsafe abortion. Unfortunately, there are some unqualified medical personnel who will take advantage of these women’s vulnerability by promising them that they will take them through the process if they get paid. The dire need for unsafe abortion of these rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies eventually forces them to procure an unsafe abortion regardless of the safety and consequences.

Unsafe abortions have a wide range of adverse effects as they reduce the life quality, well-being of those affected, and in some cases, these women might experience life-threatening complications. The difficulties could be infections, hemorrhage, and injuries to internal body organs. Other critical complications include incomplete abortions that require further treatment, uterine perforation. These complications could lead to disabilities and even deaths (Shahbazi, 2012). As a result, the affected women, families, and health system spend a lot of finances to treat the complications that result from unsafe abortions. The government spends millions of dollars on treating complications that arise from unsafe abortions (Vlassoff, Shearer, Walker & Lucas, 2008). Therefore, making abortion illegal will socially and economically affect this population.

Denying abortion to rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies results increases poverty levels as these women are more likely to fall under the poverty line. Unintended pregnancies are known to prevent these women from completing their education and building successful careers, given the fact that denial to abortion results in psychological conditions such as depression. These mental conditions prevent these women from securing stable employment opportunities, and most of them live from paycheck to paycheck as they are unemployed (Foster et al., 2018).

The poverty levels and depression potentially force these women to seek solace elsewhere by becoming drug users. Drug addiction and poverty are yet other critical issues that result when rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies are denied abortions. As a result, the unwanted children become victims as they end up lacking a stable support family system, a good education, and generally a successful future. These children are more likely to become drug addicts and criminals in the future based on the kind of environment that they are raised in (Roberts, Rocca & Foster, 2014). Denying these women abortions prevents them from completing their education or build their careers; henceforth a majority of them end up below the poverty line, and this forces them to become drug addicts. It is therefore evident that making abortion illegal not only affects rape victims and women with unwanted pregnancies but also the society as a whole.

Individuals who oppose the legalization of abortion have presented some alternatives to help minimize abortion and unwanted pregnancies. Based on their arguments, abortions could be reduced by minimizing the rates at which women get unwanted pregnancies. It is with no doubt that approximately half of all pregnancies are usually unintended and half of these unintended pregnancies result into abortion. The first way that could reduce abortions by preventing unwanted pregnancies is through the introduction of comprehensive sexual education in schools and to the community. This comprehensive sexual education is meant to provide individuals with critical information regarding the use of contraception and abstinence. With regards to the use of contraception, these opponents claim that easy access to contraceptives and pregnancy prevention procedures will reduce unwanted pregnancies, and this will minimize the need for abortions.