Abortions

It is saddening to know that even in this day and age, women are still not fully respected enough to make their own decisions. Although women have gone through many years of oppression due to patriarchal societies, it is clear that sexism is still around even in the 21st century.

On June 24th, the landmark Roe v Wade ruling that recognised a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion and legalised it nationwide in the United States since 1973 to 2022, was overturned by five of the members of the US Supreme Court. The four others voted against overturning Roe v. Wade. Nine states have already banned abortion, and for states such as Texas, there is no exception even if the patient is in a life-threatening situation, for instance, an ectopic pregnancy, where the fertilised egg attaches someplace other than the uterus and is extremely dangerous, possibly leading to major internal bleeding and is deathly threatening to the mother.

Another recent situation  was the news about a 10 year old girl who had to travel to another state to get an an abortion in Indianapolis, Indiana as the state she lived in, Ohio, was one state that outlawed abortions with zero exceptions after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

When I heard the news I was extremely shocked. At ten years old, most children are living out their childhood and are carefree. Imagine being that girl, having to carry that burden at such a young age. Even though I did not live in America and had to face those problems, I still felt deeply sad and sympathetic for those living there. 

Through many centuries, women have always faced some kind of difficulties. Whether the ability to vote, or the ability to get a proper education, it has always been a struggle for women to live in a world where we are held up to standards and are being told what to do and what to not do. Women have come a long way from those sad times but that does not mean we are completely free from it.

Taking away a woman’s right to do what she wants with her body is just another form of oppression. Why should anyone tell anyone what to do? From an article by Harvard T.H. Chan Scholl of public health, Ana Langer, professor  of the practice of public health and coordinator of the Women and Health Initiative, says: ‘Numerous international and regional human rights treaties and national-level constitutions around the world protect the right to safe and legal abortion as a fundamental human right. Access to safe abortion is included in a constellation of rights, including the rights to life, liberty, privacy, equality and non-discrimination, and freedom from cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. Human rights bodies have repeatedly condemned restrictive abortion laws as being incompatible with human rights norms.’ Other people’s opinions should not be able to affect others choices, regardless of what they think, and we should live in a world where a choices like abortion is up to the person taking it.

In an article by Vox, Diana Greene Foster, a professor at the University of California San Francisco and the lead researcher on the Turnaway Study, which analyzed how women who received an abortion and women who were denied one were affected by that important juncture in their life, writes in the 2020 book ‘The Turnaway Study’ that she finds no evidence abortion hurts women. The mental health of women who received an abortion was better immediately after the procedure than that of women who were denied one. Their physical health fared better over the longer term. Their subsequent children developed better. Other websites like the American Psychological Association also agree with this. 

Of course, an abortion is a big decision and not something one will take lightly. Like other decisions such as pregnancy, there will always be possible consequences one must know about before making the decision.

Moreover, if abortion is illegal, measures to make sure the kids who came from the result of not having an abortion have a safe family that can guarantee they will still take care of the child. Another thing that should be pushed forward in order to reduce abortions is proper sexuality education for youths. This can help them make proper choices and understand the consequences of their actions. Some people may argue that they think it is inappropriate for children to learn about such things at a young age but children already talk to  each other about such things due to the influence of the media everywhere. With the proper knowledge about their bodies, unwanted pregnancies will decrease and thus, bringing down the number of abortions. Unfortunately there are still states in America that does not have mandated sex education.

More contraceptives, such as birth control pills, should be made available, to decrease the number of abortions in America too. However, contraception methods could be targeted too, as an article from Forbes says that some lawmakers already suggested the Supreme Court wants to do.

Furthermore, restricting women’s access to safe and legal abortion services does not result fewer abortions. Instead, it will compel women to risk their lives and health by seeking out unsafe abortion care. According to the World Health Organization, 23,000 women die from unsafe abortions each year and tens of thousands more experience significant health complications globally. Besides, in states such as Arkanasas, if a woman gets an abortion there she would face penalties of up to a $100,000 fine and this means that Americans who are doing better financially may be able to get these abortions and pay the fines, while minorities like women of colour, with a lower wage, will be at a disadvantage as it may be more difficult for them to fork up that much money.

To conclude, this is a difficult time for women all around the world, not just America, to know that another country has restricted abortion and that women’s rights have once again been targeted. I truly hope that one day people can understand that everyone should have the choice to make their own decisions and not be controlled by what others or the law says.

Naomi Tan

Secondary 4 Purity

2025