abortion essay

Submitted By jocenegrete
Words: 611
Pages: 3

Jocelyn Negrete
Walker
ERWC Period 3
25 November 2014
Abortion Should Not Be Legal Determining whether or not abortions should be legalized is one of the greatest controversial topics in the United States. Many Pro-Life Activists believe having an abortion is committing murder. In contrast, Pro-Choice Activists believe women should have the choice of terminating their pregnancies. The question is, should abortions be legalized throughout the nation? According to Kathy Ostrowski, author of the article “Scientists Know Unborn Babies Feel Pain in Abortions, Will Congress Listen?” she states that during twenty and thirty weeks of a pregnancy an unborn child develops pain receptors that have five times the pain sensitivity that any child or adult is capable of feeling. Although, most abortions occur in the first trimester of a pregnancy there are a few that occur in the second and third trimesters. An example of one of the abortions that maybe conducted in the later stages of pregnancy is a Dilation and Extraction. This procedure may take three days to successfully complete. During the first two days, the woman’s cervix is dilated. On the third day, she receives medication to induce labor. As the woman labors, the abortionist uses an ultrasound to locate the baby’s legs and then grasps a leg with forceps and delivers the baby up to its head. Next, using a scissors, the abortionist creates an opening in the base of the baby’s skull. A suction catheter is inserted into the skull opening, and the baby’s brains are suctioned out. The skull collapses, and the rest of the baby’s body is delivered through the birth canal. Acknowledging that unborn children can feel pain while going through these types of procedures should motivate us to put an end to abortions. Unborn children, however, are not the only ones who suffer because of abortion procedures. Women suffer as well. After having an abortion, a woman may be effected psychologically and physically. Women may be more likely to develop pelvic inflammatory diseases, abdominal damage, and breast cancer. They may also develop an infection that may result in death. They can also begin to develop suicidal thoughts along with agony. Many can argue that there should be special circumstances where a mother is able to terminate her pregnancy if abortions become illegal. Special circumstances