ABORTION LAWS
April 19, 2022
By Ellen Song
Weighing Between Rights of the Mother and the Fetus
The right to abortion, the voluntary act of terminating a pregnancy, with or without the help of others, is a contentious issue that has spurred ongoing debates in the fields of religion, politics, and law.
The law seeks to balance the right to life of the fetus and the autonomy of the female body. Current abortion laws vary widely across the globe. Conditions under which abortion is permitted range from “risk to life”, “impregnation via rape”, to “social or economic reasons”, and in some countries, namely China and Canada, purely upon the women’s “request”.
Two opposing voices that dominate the discourse identify themselves as “pro-life” and “pro-choice”. Pro-life advocates emphasize the right to life of the fetus and consider it immoral to deprive this right on the whim of the mother. Meanwhile, pro-choice supporters argue that women should have control over their bodies, and that their decision to abort is justified under their fundamental freedom of choice.
Religious and political elements are also at play in the debate on the legal status of abortion. Religious groups often identify with the pro-life side due to their belief in the divinity of human life. In the US, pro-life campaigns have gained support from the Catholic Church, the Mormon Church and a variety of religious organizations. Abortion rights movements and anti-abortion campaigns are also endorsed by different political parties, which further complicates the issue. By and large in the US, Democrats support the pro-choice notion, while Republicans back the pro-life.
"Heartbeat" Bans in Texas and the Continuous Right for Abortion Rights
The fight over abortion rights continues unabated. Just last year, the “heartbeat” bans in Texas garnered attention as the Supreme Court refused to block this state law that prohibits women over 6 weeks into pregnancy to abort. The law provides no exceptions to impregnation by rape or incest, circumventing abortion after a “fetal heartbeat” can be detected. Notably, during the period when most terminations occur. Following this Supreme Court decision, the State of Mississippi challenged Roe v. Wade, the ruling that
first established the right to abortion in the US.
Liberal Justices have referred to the Texas abortion law as a “havoc” wrought on women, the most extreme restriction since Roe v. Wade. However, on a global scale, the rigidness of these restrictions pales in comparison to the “highly restrictive rules” that completely bans abortion or only allowing it to save the mother’s life. A quarter of the global population are still living under such restrictions.
The battle for abortion rights is a continuous one, and as the walls close in, we need to make sure every woman has the right to make an informed choice.
References:
[1] Brody, B. A. (1971). Abortion and the Law. The Journal of Philosophy, 68(12), 357–369. https://doi.org/10.2307/2024917
[2]World Population Policies 2017: Abortion Laws and Policies, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2020.
[3]Lydia Saad, "U.S. Abortion Attitudes Stable; No Consensus on Legality," gallup.com, June 9, 2017
[4]History of abortion - procon.org. Abortion. (2021, December 17). Retrieved March 31, 2022, from https://abortion.procon.org/history-of-abortion/
[5]The Economist Newspaper. (n.d.). The Supreme Court declines to block Texas's abortion law. The Economist. Retrieved March 31, 2022, from https://www.economist.com/united-states/2021/12/10/the-supreme-court-declines-to-block-texass-abortion-law
[6]The Economist Newspaper. (n.d.). The fight for abortion rights in Texas is far from over. The Economist. Retrieved March 31, 2022, from https://www.economist.com/united-states/2021/09/11/the-fight-for-abortion-rights-in-texas-is-far-from-over
[7]Ibid.