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American Domestic Policy Essay: Abortion
Emmanuelle Jensen
Salt Lake Community College
POLS 1100: American Government and Politics
Perparim Gutaj, Ph.D
December 12, 2022
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American Domestic Policy Essay: Abortion
Abortion is the act of terminating a pregnancy, either through medication or a surgical
procedure upon the mother’s decision not to carry and give birth to her fetus (World Health
Organization, 2021). Abortion has been a controversial domestic policy in America since long
before the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court trial, but this specific trial was notable fuel to the fire for
both sides of the issue, as it led to the legalization of abortion in most states. Controversies are
heated between the “Pro-Choice” and “Pro-Life” movements, with supporters of abortion
arguing that it breaks gender role stereotypes, brings beneficial data within education
opportunities, and supports the Constitution’s values within the Fourteenth Amendment. On the
other hand, opponents of abortion argue it is not in fact protected under the Constitution, and this
idea is fabricated by interpreting constitutional implications which are not there; they argue life
begins at the moment of conception, and thus fetuses are people to be protected under the
Constitution. It has been widely debated how extensive the government’s role should be
concerning this issue, through points of whether they are imposing on a woman’s right to
privacy, or sitting back too leniently while unborn children are allegedly being murdered.
Ultimately, with both views in mind, the government must be involved by creating a consistent
framework which applies to all states, but leaves room for both a woman’s choice and justice in
light of an agreed upon value of life.
Arguments in favor of the Pro-Choice movement—those who advocate for a woman’s
right to a legal abortion in any scenario— coincide with the general feminist goal of breaking
gender stereotypes for women, namely those of traditional housewife roles, and subjection to
men. Pro-Choice supporters believe abortion is protected under the Constitution, as a right to
privacy, as interpreted from the Fourteenth Amendment, namely where it says “No state shall
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make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the
United States” (Constitution Annotated, n.d.), interpreting that privileges implies the right to
abortion access. There are clear data statistics showing the benefits abortion has given to women
across the nation, leading a better life from both a health and economic perspective, through the
lens of education.
Women’s education has been an area greatly impacted by the general legalization of
abortion in 1973 with Roe v. Wade. A woman’s right to choose whether or not to raise a child in
the midst of their education is pivotal in determining the trajectory of her life from then on. One
article points out that “only 40 percent of teen moms finish high school, and less than two
percent of teen mothers (those who have a baby before age 18) finish college by age 30”
(Shuger, 2012). This lack of education ultimately leads a woman to have a lack of work
opportunities without a degree; one she would have earned if she stayed on course for her
education, were she to never have a child. Helen Connolly and Peter Gottschalk found in their
statistical analysis that “Both within-job wage growth and between-job wage growth are higher
for more educated workers” (2006). Thus the legalization of abortion has made it possible for
more women to attain higher educational opportunities, and therefore higher paying jobs, which
leads women to more sustainable lives free from poverty or reliance on government funding
which burdens our economy and nation as a whole.
These statistics support the fight to break traditional stereotypes, but Pro-Life supporters
would argue that abortion is murder, and therefore is wrong despite what some call benefits.
Supporters of the Pro-Life movement—which is in clear opposition of abortion in any
case—agree on a couple of arguments opposing Pro-Choice supporters’ ideas. Many argue that
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abortion is not protected by the Constitution, and that the ways people try to fit abortion into its
language are reaching for something not explicitly stated. The heart of their argument is the idea
that life begins the moment a man’s sperm and a woman’s egg meet and, flowing from this
understanding, fetuses are persons who ought to be protected under the same conditions as any
American citizen. This idea would mean that killing any fetus, of any age, would be punishable
as a murder charge. The United States Confederate of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) holds a
religious conviction which would seldom be refuted by Pro-Life supporters. They say, “A
‘privacy right’ large enough to encompass abortion could also be applied to virtually any conduct
performed outside the public view, including child abuse, possession of pornography or using
illicit drugs. The liberty interest to be protected from state regulation is never really defined in
Roe” (Wills, Esq., n.d.). The USCCB refutes the Pro-Choice position of constitutional protection
by arguing that abortion is not an act of privacy, but rather affects the lives of more people than
just the woman. However, if it is to be considered a private act, other harmful and illegal acts
should also fall under this category, becoming legal. In hopes to be more convincing of how
inhumane it is to Pro-Life supporters that fetuses are not considered people, the same article from
the USCCB goes on to say:
Dogs can be protected from killing although they are not "persons." . . . [U]nder
the Endangered Species Act (ESA), people are prosecuted, fined and jailed for
acts that may harm creatures, such as sea turtles, that are not "persons'' in the full
constitutional sense. Sea turtles are protected not only after they are hatched, but
even while in the egg. In fact, each sea turtle egg removed from its nest
constitutes a separate violation under the ESA, regardless of whether the sea
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turtle egg contained an embryo that was alive or "quick" or "viable" or even
already deceased at the time of the taking. (Ibid, sec. 6, para. 3)
Through this statement, the USCCB points out how, even if something is not interpreted by
everyone under Constitutional language to be a person, it can still be protected by the
government, and at the very least, a human being should fall under this protection. Pew Research
Center reports that 930,160 abortions took place in the year 2020, with an “8% increase in
abortions over the three-year period from 2017 to 2020.” (Diamant & Mohamed, 2022) This data
excludes abortions done illegally. What this shows is that the frequency of abortion procedures
are rising, and numbers should warrant the government's attention to what Pro-Life lobbyists
would call mass murder of human beings.
Based on both sides of this issue, the government’s involvement should increase. They
ought to declare when life begins based on an understanding of scientific evidence, then leave it
up to each state to allow or not allow abortion based on this consistent and equally instated
framework of the government-determined life’s beginning. This is not removing the woman’s
choice but placing parameters founded in both the government’s agreed-upon value of life and
the value of protection of all peoples which both sides agree is a theme of our Constitution. This
resolution protects the life of the mother and the child through science and fundamental values of
our government. The protection of all American citizens can be clearly found in the Constitution,
and is not merely implied. Thus the government must decide when a fetus becomes a person in
light of the contentious interpretations of the Fourteenth Amendment. This resolution also makes
provision for victims of rape or sexual abuse, who would still have the opportunity to have an
abortion within the predetermined framework.
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These laws of course should be created with exceptions in mind for medical emergencies,
such as risk to the mother or child, so the mother may be allowed an abortion even after the
government-set time period of legal protection. Alongside this, the government should
implement more funding for foster homes and heighten requirements for foster parents, making it
a safer, more reliable system for children whose mothers have exceeded the time frame to abort
but don’t have the means to raise a child. To respect both arguments, women should not be
forced to raise their children if they are emotionally, financially, or physically unable; but neither
should a baby be considered merely a clump of cells, free to be thrown away. Furthermore, there
should be more parameters in place like allowing abortion based on financial status, age, access
to healthcare, outside support, etc., which could determine whether a woman’s abortion is
logistically necessary or not. This proposed plan of action may give some answers to each side of
the issue, (1) maintaining women’s autonomy without encouraging recklessness while (2) also
protecting unborn children without disregarding a woman’s equal need for protection. In all ways
this resolution offers a clear framework under which our whole nation ought to abide, while still
leaving room for choices between state legislatures and women.
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References:
Connolly, H. & Gottschalk, P. (2006). Differences in Wage Growth by Education Level: Do
Less-Educated Workers Gain Less from Work Experience?. IZA DP No. 2331.
https://ftp.iza.org/dp2331.pdf
Constitution Annotated. (n.d.). Fourteenth Amendment Citizenship, Equal Protection, and Other
Rights of Citizens.
https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-14/#:~:text=No%20State%20shall%
20make%20or,equal%20protection%20of%20the%20laws.
Diamant, J. & Mohamed, B. (June 24, 2022). What the data says about abortion in the U.S. Pew
Research Center.
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/06/24/what-the-data-says-about-abortion-inthe-u-s-2/
Shuger, L. (2012). Teen Pregnancy and High School Dropout: What Communities Can
Do to Address These Issues. Washington, DC: Power to Decide
https://powertodecide.org/what-we-do/information/resource-library/teen-pregnancy-andhigh school-dropout
Wills, S., Esq. (n.d.). 10 Legal Reasons to Reject Roe. The United States Confederate of Catholic
Bishops.
https://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/abortion/10-legal-reason
s-to-reject-roe
World Health Organization. (November 25, 2021). Abortion.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/abortion