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David Garibaldi
Claudia Rivera
Alissa Traversi-Adams
David Something
The morality of induced abortion is one of the most controversial moral issues of our time. Abortion has grown to be one, if no the most, debated argument of modern times. In the following web-page, we will be discussing abortion in three of its major aspects: Public Opinion, Congress and Courts, and Interest groups.
Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy before birth, resulting in the death of the embryo or fetus. Abortion is an issue in which most people have an opinion on. Whether it is pro-life or pro-choice, most opinions do reflect the individual and their personal opinions in life. As will be discussed further on, there is a great dividend in the population concerning their sides in this matter.
Both the Legislative and Judiciary branches of government have played an important role in the history and present time on this issue. Policies and other actions have been taken throughout legislature to either prevent or encourage abortion.
Interest Groups have also played an important role in influencing legislature with their votes. Today, there exist a great number of both pro-life and pro-choice activist groups who try to change policies reflecting their opinions. For more general information regarding abortion:On Abortion: A Lincolnian Position
Public Opinion
Abortion is an issue, both politically and socially, that has been debated and discussed throughout a number of decades. The disagreement have lead to a number of policies, and other causes of action. Abortion has become such an important dilemna, that some people find it as a major contributor in their political ideologies and preferences. Public opinion, therefore, is the root to many of these changes and ideas of thinking. Public Opinion is what people think, not so much what their representatives vote in the Senate and House of Representatives, but what citizens think and hold opinions on, concerning certain issues. Just as the following link shows and explains, the issue of abortion, concerning public opinion, illustrates a bimodal distribution: PUBLIC OPINION POLLS ON ABORTION Here we see how the public opinion of the people is very distinct and diverse. We see many of those individuals who believe in pro-life, as well as those who believe in pro-choice.
Why does this issue continue to persist at such an increasing debate? It is because each side has poweful arguments and devoted adherents. On one side, we have those who believe that they are fighting for the lives of millions of soon to be humans who are being killed in their prenatal stage. On the other hand, we find those who see this issue as fighting for a woman's freedom to control her body, her private decisions, and in some cases her life. But how does public opinion relate to the policies made concerning this issue? As will be proved throughout this web-page, both political branches of government, legislative and executive, do not necessarily represent the ideas of public opinion. But what exactly does Pro-life and Pro-choice mean? To clarify in a very simple, yet quite explanitory way, go to: Abortion Choice Vote So, the fact that people, in general share these two major, opposing sides makes this issue even harder to resolve. As shown in the censuses, public opinion, in this country, is very diverse and equally distributed among both sides. What can we do? It is impossible to satisfy both these opinions, so where should we start?
The Congress and Courts
The personal position of women concerning abortion has become a very political issue throughout history. It has become a challenge in society to be able to understand everyone's point of view and to be fair in judging what is right or wrong. The issue at hand is whether a woman should be permitted by law to have an abortion and if so under what circumstances. To what extent should we let both state and federal governments control our personal decisions?
Congress plays a major part in making these decisions, exercising its law making power to check the law-interpreting power of the judiciary branch of government. The job of the Courts is to extend court cases in both law and equity under the Constitution. The Ninth Amendment of the Constitution is a very subjective issue. An issue of understanding its meaning to know if it protects privacy. The Ninth Amendment; the enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others restrained by the people.
In 1973, the case of Rose v. Wade, there was a decision made by the United States Supreme Court on Abortion. The court ruled that staes could not forbid a woman to have an abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy. The decision, according to the courts, maust be left to the female individual and her physician. However, when it comes to the last few months of the prenatal period, states do have the power to regulate, according to their beliefs, abortion actions. Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, in 1989, dealt with the official testing of the age of the fetus, due to state regulations depending on the age of the fetus, in some cases, the baby. The court decided that the states require doctors to test whether the fetus is twenty weeks or older, before performing, or in some cases, not performing the operation. For more information about controversy and rage in the U.S. concerning abortion rights: Court upholds fees for abortion protesters
Over the last years, Congress has twice tried to introduce legislation to ban late-term abortions. Congress, in general, has tried to decrease the amounts of abortion, due to its high abortion rate of the past years ( 1.5 million abortion being performed every year). The national Right to Life Committee announced that it would be supporting a new bill in congress that would make it a Federal offense to transport a minor across a state line for an abortion without notification or consent by a parent or guardian.
Todays Congress is more anti-abortion than ever, having only a third in the senate (due mainly to the Republican representation), and around a quarter in the House of Representatives.
Interest Groups
Interest Groups have a great influence in policy making decisions. There are many pro-life and pro-choice groups today. To decide what is the right mentality to think can be very difficult. Many people are in between the pro-choice and pro-life decisions. For example, there are people who feel that abortion is wrong, unless the woman is raped or the child's life is in danger. These excuses seem to be reasonable, but the pro-lifers disagree. Some groups disagree so much that they resort to violence as an answer. In 1994, the number of violence against abortion clinics were:
- 4 murders
- 8 attempted murders
- 1 acid attack
- 4 bombings or attempted bombings
- 7 arsons or attempted arsons
Some pro-life groups are the Right To Life, The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights and The Americans United for Life. When speaking of pro-choice, the name Planned Parenthood is bound to come up. Planned Parenthood gives their opinion to the pro-lifers who use violence as a means to having their beliefs heard. " In every generation there exists a group of people so filled with bigotry and self-righteousness that they will resort to any means--even violence--to impose their views on soceity..." says an advocate for Planned Parenthood. Some pro-choice groups are:
- NARAL-National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws
- N.O.W.-National Organization for Women
- ACLU-American Civil Liberties Union
Moderates, who are in between the public opinion, are torn between pro-life and pro-choice because they are not educated enough on either opinion. Not one decision is the right decision, but one thing is for sure, a baby's life is at stake here. When deciding to kill your baby or not, the decision ought to be clear. If one does not want to put up with such pressures, then they should look into abstinence.
For more information about the Planned Parenthood interest group:
Planned Parenthood: Your Uncensored Source
For more information about Right To Life:
Right-to-life organizations
Abortion and the Constitution
In 1973, the landmark case of Roe V. Wade came to a close. In a 7-2 vote the Supreme Court ruled that abortion was a private matter and therefore it was protected by the Constitution. The result of the Supreme Court decision was the elimination of state laws across the country that made abortion illegal. The legalization of abortion also divided this country in half. Abortion is one of the most controversial topics of our day and the focus of many heated political and moral debates. Much of the debate focuses on the role of the nine justices in the Supreme Court and the interpretation of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
The 1973 decision prompted the formation of various pro-life and pro- choice movements. These two opposing groups have become some of the most powerful lobbies in American politics. On side is the pro-life movement. The goal of the pro-life movement is to overturn the decision made by the Supreme Court. On the other are the pro-choice activists. Their purpose is to uphold the 1973 decision and protect abortion rights. Both sides present strong arguments and use our country's political process and ideals to make their points. Abortion opponents claim that the Court interfered with the democratic process by removing the debate from state legislatures where they believed it belonged. Supporters of abortion make the claim that the right to abortion is protected by the Constitution. While individual rights are something that we hold dear. What do the Consitution and Bill of Rights say when it comes to the right to privacy? Nothing. Justice Harry A Blackmun who wrote the Roe V. Wade decision could not cite any specific sections of the Bill of Rights to explain his decision. Instead, he used various amendments, particularly the idea of personal liberty which is stated in the fourteenth, to explain his decision.
Important questions are raised in examining the Roe V. Wade decision. Did the Supreme Court usurp the legislative role of the government? Are the privacy rights created by Roe V. Wade in the Bill of Rights? One thing is certain. Although this ruling was made 25 years ago, the legacy of Roe V. Wade is stronger today than ever before.
Supreme Court Decisions Concerning Reproductive Rights:
NARAL Factsheets
Bibliography
Janda. Berry. Goldman. The Challenge of Democracy. Houghton Mifflin Company. Boston. New york. Fifth Ed.
Mitchell, Alison. Both Sides Rally to Mark Abortion Ruling." The New York Times 23 January 1998: 19.
Rodame, Hyman. Betty Sarvis. Joy Walker Bonar. The Abortion Question. Columbia University Press, New York 1987
Seelye, Katharine. " Advocates of Abortion Rights Report a Rise in Restrictions". The New York Times 15 Jan. 1998:16.
Singer, Peter. Rethinking Life And Death.
St. Martin's Griffin, New York.
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