The question of central importance in the abortion debate is when does human life begin? The problem is that there is no singular answer to this question, but rather answers are subjective – differing between religions, cultures, and nations. So, who gets to decide? Women or their governments?
Abortion refers to a medical procedure which deliberately terminates human pregnancy. In our society today, we have given politicians the power to determine whether women will have access to a medical procedure. Abortion is so politicized it has become an issue of morality, shame, and religion, rather than a discussion between a woman and her doctor. Doctors and medical experts have stepped into the legislature to support the constitutional right to abortions with scientific-based arguments. They are often opposed by religious followers, basing arguments on morality and God. Abortion requires having regulatory laws in healthcare policy grounded in scientific evidence, not morality-based laws outright banning abortions.
On June 24th, the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe v. Wade. In 1973, Roe v. Wade established the constitutional right to abortions. States were unable to create laws that would prevent abortions in the first two trimesters of pregnancy. States could create laws preventing abortion in the third trimester, except when it is needed to preserve a woman’s life or health.
The constitutional right to legal abortions was a fight already won by women decades ago, but now the United States has taken a giant step back. The Supreme Court has peeled away the protection preventing states from creating intrusive abortion laws, and now women will suffer the consequences. Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, six states have banned abortion – Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Missouri, and South Dakota. States have exceptions to save the life of the pregnant individual, but not all make exceptions for rape or incest.
In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning most abortions after 15 weeks. This bill does not make exceptions for incest, rape, or human trafficking. In Oklahoma, Governor Kevin Stitt has signed a bill that would make performing abortions a felony except in medical emergencies. At the bill signing, Stitt said, “we want Oklahoma to be the most pro-life state in the country. We want to outlaw abortion in the state of Oklahoma.” In Ohio, abortion is illegal after embryonic cardiac activity can be detected, which occurs around six weeks into the pregnancy. Women are often not yet aware they are pregnant six weeks into their pregnancy.
Abortion has always been discussed in relation to women’s status in society and the patriarchy. Banning abortion means controlling the behaviour of women. When governments control the fertility of women and the number of children they have, they are affecting all areas of her life – such as her education, career, and economic standing. Women for decades have become increasingly aware of the oppression of their anatomy and fought battles with the government to protect the right to exercise control over their own bodies.
According to the World Health Organization, “a lack of access to safe, affordable, timely and respectful abortion care, and the stigma associated with abortion, pose risks to women’s physical and mental well-being throughout the life course.” They also state that “inaccessibility of quality abortion care risks violating a range of human rights of women and girls,” such as the “right to life, the right to decide freely and responsibly on the number, spacing and timing of children, the right to be free from torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment, the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, and the right to benefit from scientific progress and its realization.”
Abortion is an issue of healthcare, patriarchy, and human rights. It must be the choice of the pregnant individual – to be discussed with their family, their doctor, and their God.
