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Alyssa Mohr

Sarah Mak
Politics 20
5/25/12

Intro
Every year more than a million girls under the age of twenty become pregnant
(Medoff, 539). Many of these teenagers consider abortion. Allowing a woman to have an
abortion has been a controversial topic as well as a social and political issue. In 2008, we
had a woman running for the Presidential Election, and women have become very
involved in politics and are starting to make a difference in society. Although there are
many women representing our government, there are still many controversial topics
affecting women and their rights even today. One of the major ones is abortion. Ideas,
research, and the minds of people have changed since the 1970s: Both in 1977 and in
1996, 45% of the American public thought that abortion should be available to a married
women who wanted no more children (Strickler and Danigelis, 188). This approval
rating of abortion has changed over the years, but has remained surprisingly consistent
since the public has become more educated on the issue throughout the years. Polls on
public opinion have shown that people who are pro-choice and pro-life are ambivalent.
This has a lot to do with how people are asked about the case of abortion. The way
questions are asked affect the way people answer the question. Public opinion on abortion
has to do with interest groups as well as the affects of gender, ethnicity, and political
ideology. In my opinion abortion is a serious thing and it can have major setbacks but if
the woman is an adult (18+) than it should be up to her. So as of now, I am Pro-Choice,
however there are situations where I believe in keeping a baby and just giving it up for
abortion and there are also circumstances (rape, incest) where I have stronger beliefs for

getting an abortion, but I believe that it is the womans body and she should be able to
choose what she wants to do in the long run.

Federal Level
Abortion has been an issue or a subject of discussion for at least the past thirty
years. What it is today is even more complicated because there are different
circumstances with which abortion can occur meaning some states it is legal and some
states that is not the case. The state and federal government are on different levels. This is
the controversy that has risen since it all began in 1973 when the case of Roe v Wade
occurred. At the federal level, abortion is about the woman and her relationship with her
body and her doctor. Roe v Wade is more of a case about a womens privacy than about
allowing a woman to get an abortion before the second trimester. So at the federal level,
abortion is legal in these circumstances.

History of Abortion
This case stated that abortion was up to the woman to get an abortion or not. The
restraint was late term abortions. States cannot ban abortions within the first trimester. In
the second trimester, states can regulate abortions but only for helping the women if their
lives are at risk. Finally, in the third trimester, states can ban abortions. This being the
case, there are still states in which abortions are banned and there are states where
abortions are performed after the second trimester.

State Level
Even though the federal government passed a legislation allowing a woman to get an
abortion within the first trimester of her pregnancy, some states decided to pass laws
either to undermine the legislation or to alter it. One case that is an example of

broadening the legislation in terms of allowing more opportunity to get an abortion is


Planned Parenthood v. Casey. This case challenges the regulations of Roe v.
Wade. However, it affirmed the case and broadened the states authority to regulate it.
(Pbs.org, 1992) Another case that challenged but actually undermined the legislation is
very recent in Arizona. In Arizona, the state government started to close down Planned
Parenthood clinics because of the regulations that the government created. These
regulations were so restricted that Planned Parenthood clinics could not comply and
closed clinics all over Arizona. Along with closing clinics down, Arizona also passed an
abortion mandate, which stated that life starts when the womans egg is ovulating.
Arizona decided to ban abortion on a fetus that was at the age of 20 weeks: It also
mandates that the gestational age should be calculated from date of the last menstrual
period (or LMP) for the woman who is pregnant. However, given the mechanics of
ovulation and fertilization that LMP date is usually about two weeks before the egg is
fertilized and the woman actually becomes pregnant. Hence, the new meme that Arizona
is declaring women to be pregnant two weeks before they even have sex (Bennet, 2012).
This adds to the controversy of when life begins for a fetus, which in turn makes
getting an abortion more difficult for the woman. However, this age of the fetus was
confirmed by an OB/GYN who stated that other states might begin to realize that the age
is something they need to pay attention to. The argument for the Arizona mandate is that
it is a medical mandate mostly because the state is trying to find the gestational age of the
when life begins. The main point here is that states are taking on the issue of when life
begins and abortion into their own hands. This goes without saying that the states of
Arizona and Pennsylvania (Casey case) are taking the legislation of abortion into their

own hands and are altering it. These kinds of cases stir up controversy on the fact that the
federal government might say one thing, but the state government has more power in
cases like these.

Pro-Choice Argument
What do people actually mean when they say they are pro-choice? Pro choice in
terms of abortion goes hand in hand with people who believe that women have the full
right to what they wish to do with their bodies: It is sometimes argued, or even implied
as self-evident truth that the pro-abortionists case rests securely on the assumption that a
woman has a fundamental right to do what she will with her own body (McLachlan,
1997). People who are pro-choice believe that a woman no matter what age can get an
abortion whenever she feels necessary; it is not believed to be murder. They feel that
putting restraints on what a woman can or cannot do with her own body is putting
restraints on her freedoms. Protecting woman rights to choose, politically, is a liberal
view of abortion. Pro-choice advocates are all about the womens rights and what is best
for the woman.

Pro-Life Argument
On the other side of this argument, there are those who are pro-life. These are the
interest groups, which incorporate a large portion of religion in their views of abortion. It
is somewhat self-explanatory but it is an important aspect of the argument. This view is
very conservative and is also a strong view of those who are part of the Catholic or
Christian religion. They believe that abortion is murder and that life begins when the
baby is conceived; that it is already in the form of a baby at the point of conception. ProLife advocates try to turn to religion and morals to support their views of anti-abortion.

Morals and values are important factors that affect the views of the public. This is also
shown in polls later described.

Interest Groups
Since abortion has been a controversial topic for many years, it has accumulated
many interest groups. One major interest group is Planned Parenthood, which has spread
all over the country. They provide sexual health care for women and provide
contraceptives (birth control, condoms, etc). These contraceptives are provided free no
matter what insurance a person has; making it available to all women who are in need of
support. Some Planned Parenthood clinics even provide abortions. They provide
procedure or give the abortion pill. (plannedparenthood.org) This is an interest group that
supports the woman in her decision-making (Pro-choice). They are for abortion if the
woman decides it is in her best interest. They also provide abortions if the womens life is
in danger. When a woman is under the age of 18, then the teenager needs parental
consent, however this is not in every state, which will be explained later on. An interest
group that supports abortion and also helps with politics is an organization known as
EMILYS List. Their main goal is to raise money to elect Pro-Choice democratic women.
They create a list of smart democratic women to run for their cause.
(http://usgovinfo.about.com/blorgs.htm)
Medical professionals or doctors can also be potential interest groups for abortion.
An example of a doctor would be George Tiller who was a late term abortion provider in
Kansas, Wichita. This stirred up a lot of controversy after an anti-abortionist just this past
year shot and killed him. Pro-abortionists supported Tiller, while there was an uprising on
the opposite side of George Tiller. Tiller would get death threats way before he was shot,

but would continue to perform late term abortions which is illegal according to the very
famous case Roe v. Wade.

An example of an interest group that is anti-abortion would be a Catholic Church.


They believe that abortion is murder and that once a baby is conceived; it is the beginning
of life. Another interest group who is very dedicated with other issues as well as abortion
is called the National Right to Life. These people do not support abortion and on their
website they intensify what kind of ways abortion is performed. One of their surprising
statistics shows that rape/incest is not a common reason women get abortions: Women
have cited 'social reasons', not mother's health or rape/incest as their motivation in
approximately 93% of all abortions (NRLC). They have also been involved in
legislation by Congress and even legislation by Obama. One piece of legislation in which
NRLC supported by Congress was the Protect Life Act. This act, which was passed last
year in October, nullified the many abortion expansions in Obamas healthcare bill.
(NRLC) This group is one of the oldest and most important Pro-Life groups in the United
States. Their goals are to pass legislation and educate young women about the facts of
abortion. Another famous organization that has been around for over twenty years is an
organization known as Pro-Life Alliance of Gays and Lesbians. This interest group relies
on the ethics of being Pro-Life with the addition of human rights for both gays and
lesbians. Since gays and lesbians cannot have children, I feel this is a reason they are ProLife with also the importance of ethics.

Public Opinion

When people were asked of their opinion in the polls, the majority had spoken.
When Obama was running for President there was two different props that everyone was
talking about. One of those was the prop on gay marriage, but the other was about
abortion and whether it was ok for a woman to get an abortion without parent consent.
California Prop 4 stated: The initiative petition would prohibit abortion for unemancipated minors until 48 hours after physician notifies minors parent, legal guardian
or, if parental abuse has been reported, an alternative adult family member
(smartvoter.org, 2008). If you voted yes on this proposition then you voted to allow the
government to prohibit a minor to get an abortion without parent consent. If voted no,
then the minors could get an abortion without parent consent no matter what the situation.
It was a proposition that was confusing in terms of supporting and not supporting. (like
Prop 8) This would give women at any age the right over their own body at any age
without having to get consent from a guardian or parent.
Overall there has been a widespread consensus as to making abortion fully legal.
A question that was asked of the public through Gallup Polling was Do you think that
abortion should be illegal under all circumstances, or under certain circumstances? The
public had a response that was somewhat in the middle: The publics answer to this
question has remained fairly stable since it was first asked in 1975. For the most part, a
majority of Americans have taken the middle position, saying abortion should be legal
"only under certain circumstances." (Saad, 2002) No one is taking a strong stand on his
or her views in these polls. This is the most common question that is asked of Americans
when it concerns abortion, not whether they believe in abortion, but in what
circumstances should abortion be legal/illegal. So does this allow compromise between

the two opposing views, or does this make another view altogether? Another poll that was
taken most recently was a poll about the split between Pro-Life and Pro-Choice opinions.
The poll illustrates that the attitudes of Pro-Life is 45%, which is an increasing figure
from 33% in 1995. Pro-Choice has had the opposite affect. Pro-choice advocates have
gone from 56% of the public in 1995 to 49% in 2011. (Saad, 2011) A poll that could
relate to the above polls would be questions of values and morality. A majority of the
United States believes that abortion is morally wrong, however, they feel that abortion
should be legal. I find this to be quite contradictory. The poll shows how 48% of the
population thinks abortion is morally wrong where 13% of the population thought it was
morally acceptable. (Pollingreport.com, 2012)

Recent News on Abortion


Last year, a proposition was on the ballot, which stated that a woman could get a
performed abortion without parental consent. Proposition 4 was very controversial
according to the public opinion described above. Although it gave women more rights to
get an abortion, it set the precedent that abortion was legal for teenagers under the age of
18. Pro-abortionists supported this proposition and it passed during the 2008 election. It
not only passed in California, but also in five or six other states such as Nevada and
Hawaii. Other mandates that were suggested and practiced were in the state of Arizona;
discussed above and that also set the precedent for change in the abortion era.
Another big change in the past year was when President Barack Obama created a
mandate that if passed, employers would be required to provide their women employees
with a form of birth control through company insurance. Like Obamas healthcare, the
government would be able to regulate womens right to birth control. This is extremely a

form of Big Brother in the eyes of the Conservatives. Government intervention in what
type of birth control a woman can use and where she can receive it is an interesting topic
in terms of womens rights to choose. Obama replies to these accusations as providing
women who cannot afford birth control the opportunity to obtain it with government
assistance.
Government interference in what a woman can do in terms of birth control is an
imposition on the rights of citizens not only in my eyes, but also in the eyes of the
Catholics, Christians, and the Republicans. I believe that if the woman has the right to
choose to have an abortion, then she should be able to choose birth control that
accompanies her needs and not what is convenient in terms of the government or the
employer in this case.
Abortion will always be a struggle and since it has been legal for many years, it
will be hard to make it otherwise. I believe that since abortion is not one of the most
important issues in America right now according to some polls, it becomes harder to
push the government to do something about it.

Works Cited
1."Americans, Including Catholics, Say Birth Control Is Morally OK."
Gallup.com. 22 May 2012. Web. 23 May 2012.
<http://www.gallup.com/poll/154799/Americans-IncludingCatholics-Say-Birth-Control-Morally.aspx>.
2. Bennet, Dashiell. "Arizona's New Abortion Law Doesn't Do What
Everyone Thinks It Does." The Atlantic Wire. 13 Apr. 2012. Web.
23 May 2012.
<http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2012/04/arizonas-newabortion-law-doesnt-do-what-everyone-thinks-it-does/51095/#>.
3. "Issues, Organizations, and Interest Groups." Issues, Organizations,
and Interest Groups. Web. 24 May 2012.
<http://usgovinfo.about.com/blorgs.htm>.
4. McBride, Alex. "Casey v. Planned Parenthood (1992)." PBS.org. PBS,
1992. Web. 23 May 2012.
<http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_casey.h
tml>.
5. McLachlan, Hugh V. "Bodies, Rights and Abortion." Journal of Medical
Ethics. 3rd ed. Vol. 23. BMJ Group, 1997. 176-80. Print.
6. Medoff, Marshall H. "Estimates of the Abortion Demand of Young and
Older Teenagers." Population Research and Policy Review. 6th
ed. Vol. 17. Springer, 1998. 539-49. Print.
7. PollingReport.com. Web. 23 May 2012.
<http://www.pollingreport.com/abortion.htm>.
8. "Proposition 4 Waiting Period and Parental Notification Before
Termination of Minor's
Pregnancy State of California." Smart Voter by the League of Women
Voters.
9. Comprehensive, Nonpartisan Election Information. Nov. 2006. Web.
23 May 2012.
<http://www.smartvoter.org/2008/11/04/ca/state/prop/4/>.
10. Saad, Lydia. "Public Opinion About Abortion -- An In-Depth Review."
Gallup.com. Ed. Senior Editor. 22 Jan. 2002. Web. 23 May 2012.
<http://www.gallup.com/poll/9904/Public-Opinion-About-AbortionInDepth-Review.aspx>.

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11. Strickler, Jennifer, and Nicholas L. Danigelis. "Changing Frameworks


in Attitudes toward Abortion." Sociological Forum. 2nd ed. Vol. 17.
Springer, 2002. 187-201. Springer, June 2002. Web.

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