Legal Abortions Make a Safer America

Abortion is a human right. Abortion is healthcare. Abortion is a choice… a very personal choice. A choice that people do not take lightly.

But abortion is being made into a crime, an illegal act that is punishable under the law, not only to the person receiving it but also the person performing the procedure.

To me, illegalizing abortion makes no sense. It’s unfair, unsafe, immoral. It’s stripping away a basic human right: choice. It’s taking away a woman’s autonomy over her own body. It’s making an important medical procedure impossible to get, despite it being just that… a medical procedure. Making abortions illegal will not stop abortions from happening… it will only prevent people from receiving SAFE abortions.

Abortion is about the health, safety, and wellbeing of the mother and the fetus. If a pregnant person is told they might die carrying out a pregnancy, shouldn’t they have the choice to terminate that pregnancy and save their own life? If a young girl is raped and impregnated, in what world is it safe and healthy for her to carry that pregnancy to term? If a pregnant person is told their fetus has a terminal condition and will be stillborn, shouldn’t the mother have the choice to spare that fetus any more harm?

Anti-abortion activists say people who have abortions don’t think about the fetus. That they completely disregard the life growing inside them. I don’t think that’s true. Abortion is a difficult decision for anyone who finds themself in that situation. There are a lot of things to consider, like “am I financially stable enough to provide for a child?”, “can I give this child a good life?”, “if I go through with this pregnancy but don’t keep the child, what will happen to them?”, even “am I able to take care of a child?” But ultimately that decision is made because it is what’s best for the pregnant person and the fetus.

We can’t go back to times of coat hanger abortions or dangerous self-induced abortions, though it feels like we are moving in that direction. The death toll of these alternative methods will be much higher than any death toll of a legal abortion performed in a medical environment by a professional.

What’s important to remember here is that an abortion is a safe, medical procedure that can save a person’s life. People make medical decisions for themselves every day. Why is abortion any different?

So we need to keep fighting for what’s right, for what’s fair, for what’s safe. Legalize abortion nationwide, for the safety of women and fetuses.