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Brittany Bakerink
Professor Mr. Brown
English 101
11/19/15
Research Proposal
Section 1 – Summary of the Argument
In my research paper, I will argue the case for the abortion for pro-life.
In the United States, there are only ten states that are illegal for aborting children. Pro-choice
supporters believe that women who have been raped or have current health problems should have
a choice to end their pregnancy. First I intend to give an overview of abortion, including its
history, legal decisions, and general controversy. Next I will present my case by establishing the
most relevant points in my argument, including statistics of women who have had abortion
significantly regretting aborting, the after effects on women who have had abortions, and
Government officials stand on pro-life.
For my counterargument section, I will acknowledge those who support abortion by highlighting
their points. The primary counterargument in favor of abortions rests on a woman who has been
raped previously and gives her, in a way forgetting that nightmarish moment. This
counterargument will be refuted using library database under current and enduring issues on
abortion and the statistics of the outcome of women fully regretting the procedure. Finally, I will
conclude by summarizing key points will conclude by summarizing key points in the argument,
by offering possible alternatives to the death penalty, and be reasserting the case to federally
abolish capital punishment once and for all.
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I do need help with a few questions and concerns I have for the paper. Am I correct in thinking
that the primary reason people support abortion are very selfish? The death penalty is retribution
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(having a punishment that fits the crime)? Could it be something else? Is there another
counterargument that I’m missing? A second concern I have is about the costs related to the
death penalty. I’m concerned that I won’t get this section right because there are good financial
arguments on both sides of the death penalty debate. My final concern is that the cities in
America with extremely high murder rates (Chicago and Detroit) also happen to be in states that
don’t have a death penalty. I am concerned that this may work against me.
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Bakerink 3
Outline
A. abortion definition
b. Abortion overview (including list of states currently supporting abortion)
c. THESIS: Abortion should be abolished because there are many too many women who regret
the procedure, major health concerns after aborting, and most importantly it is ending a life.
II. History of the controversy
I. High profile people with regret from the procedure
ii. The history of the Roe vs Wade case (1973)
iii. The Change of heart from Roe on abortion (2004)
iv. The ten most frequently argued reasons for and against abortion
III. Support #1: killing an innocent life
a. Background on abortion with examples of selfish reasons of killing an innocent life
b. U.S. annual abortion statistics
c. Comparisons of abortions in the states that legalize abortions, and comparisons to attempted
illegal abortions at home
IV. Support #2: future reproducing problems from abortion
a. History of women not being able to reproduce after aborting their child
b. High statistics of women with major problems or reproducing
V. Support #3 Roe vs Wade case
a. Regretful thoughts and physiological problems after aborting
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i. Evidence and examples on women who undergo abortion need counseling
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ii. Examples on race/ethnicity on women who undergo abortion
iii. Examples of statistics of women in the U.S. and out of the U.S.
VI. Counterarguments
a. Overview of the top arguments in favor of abortion
i. Health side effects after abortion
ii. Deterrence of abortion on minors
iii. High costs to health care on abortions
b. Refutation of counterargument #1: Retribution
i. Retribution as a violation of the church and state separation
ii. Retribution through abortion against God
c. Refutation of counterargument #2: Incest
i. National Research on Incest and disability with the unborn child
ii. Fluctuating illegal abortion rates
d. Refutation of counterargument #3: High health care costs
I Jane Doe testimony after going to court to legalize abortion so she can undergo abortion herself
(1973).
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Brittany Bakerink
Professor Mr. Brown
11/19/15
Abortion should be illegal
In the United States, ten out of the fifty states are illegal for aborting children. Pro-choice
supporters believe that women who have been raped or if their pregnancy causes their current
health problems to worsen, they should have a choice to end their pregnancy. However abortions
should be illegal because women treat their unborn child as a disposable object, there are many
dangers to women who undergo abortions, and Obama care provides taxpayer funding for
abortions.
Pro-choice supporters believe that the government or anyone else should not be able to
have say so or an opinion in a matter concerning a woman’s decisions regards to an abortion.
They believe that an individual or government doesn’t have a right to tell a woman what to do
with her own body. Also us as human beings should be the only one in control to our own
bodies. According to Louise Melling states “Even if we disagree on the issue of abortion, we can
agree that these are private personal decisions we all must be able to make based on our own
circumstances, beliefs, and values. We should respect and support a woman and her family as
they face the life-altering decision of whether to have a child. It is neither my place nor our
government's place to make such an important life decision for someone else” (Melling). Before
the Roe Vs Wade case there were many more illegal abortions performed. However after the Roe
Vs Wade case illegal abortions decreased significantly. According to Willard Cates “In 1955,
experts had estimated, on the basis of qualitative assumptions, that 200,000-1,200,000 illegal
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abortions were performed each year. In 1967, researchers confirmed this estimate by
extrapolating data from a randomized-response survey conducted in North Carolina: They
concluded that a total of 800,000 induced (mostly illegal) abortions were performed nationally
each year” (cates).
First of all, a lot of the society today accept abortion because the child is unseen. But
what difference is killing an unborn child because of a hardship and killing a toddler because of
hardship? Is the ability of not being able to see the child really make a difference? According to
Joseph M. Scheidler “"Killing an
unborn child is inherently wrong, and therefore can never be
justified regardless of circumstances. It is no more just to kill an unborn child in order to avoid
hardship than it would be to kill a toddler to avoid hardship. Because the unborn child is unseen,
it is easier for society to condone killing him or her, though this is morally indistinguishable
from killing any child at any stage of development” (Pro-life action league). With that being
said, killing children should not be condoned no matter what circumstance it is. The way this
society views abortion is unsettling. For example, if we support a woman’s decision of abortion
it seems that if anything interferes with our comfortability then it is okay to end a life.
According to Randy Hultgren “It’s disturbing that, for more than four decades, our nation has
been complicit in this gross violation of human rights. When we tell one another that abortion is
okay, we reinforce the idea that human lives are disposable, that we can throw away anything or
anyone that inconveniences us” (Hultgren). Plain and simple a life is precious whether an
individual can see the child or not. Killing an innocent unborn baby is not the only option. If a
women decides it she will struggle or whatever her reason is, she should then consider adoption.
Because of the Roe Vs Wade case in 1973, women made a huge impact on children being
adopted. With women deciding to abort their child rather than put the baby up for adoption there
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is a critical result in couple who cannot have children have a very small chance of adopting.
According to Wendy Koch “As a result, the number of U.S. infant adoptions (about 90,000 in
1971) has fallen from 22,291 in 2002 to 18,078 in 2007, according to the most recent five-year
tally from the private National Council for Adoption” ( Koch). Sadly today women are choosing
to murder their unborn child instead of simply putting them up for adoption.
Second of all, women who undergo an abortion are taking many risks such as health and
physiological effects due to regretting the whole procedure. Women will try to forget such a
procedure, but unfortunately it is not that easy. According to David Reardon
“California Medicaid records for 173,279 women who had
an induced abortion or a delivery in 1989 were linked to death
certificates for 1989 to 1997. Compared with women who
delivered, those who aborted had a significantly higher ageadjusted risk of death from all causes (1.62), from suicide (2.54),
and from accidents (1.82 Results are stratified by age and time.
Higher death rates associated with abortion persist over time and
across socioeconomic boundaries. This may be explained by selfdestructive tendencies, depression, and other unhealthy behavior
aggravated by the abortion experience” (Reardon).
With that being said women who undergo abortions have a significantly high level of regret
resulting in depression and possible ending in suicide. Abortion causes a lot of unhealthy
behaviors as explained earlier by David Reardon. These women choosing the easier route
eventually feel like it was not the easier route after all. Eventually these women have a high level
of regret and end up in a depressed mode. Women who choose to undergo an abortion are risking
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there unborn feeling the pain during the abortion. In recent studies on abortion, it is to be known
that early as the eighth week, the unborn child feels pain during an abortion. According to
Ronald Bailey “Condic does acknowledge that the “long-range connections within the cortex that
some believe to be required for consciousness do not arise until much later, around 22-24
weeks.” But she believes that the fetal neural structures needed to detect noxious stimuli are in
place by 8 to 10 weeks of development. She further asserts: “There is universal agreement that
pain is detected by the fetus in the first trimester. The debate concerns how pain is experienced”
(Bailey). Another words fetuses as early as eight weeks can feel the pain while the procedure is
going on.
Third of all, Obama care provides taxpayer funding for abortions. Which clearly
is not fair, because President Obama made it a law to all of the United States Citizens must have
insurance. According to Matthew Clark “As our legal analysis of a bill that would become
Obama Care concluded, there is nothing to “prohibit federal dollars from funding plans that
include abortion services.” In fact, the law has a section describing “ABORTIONS FOR WHICH
PUBLIC FUNDING IS ALLOWED” (Clark).
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Work Cited
David, C. Reardon PH.D (The Christian view on abortion). Abort73.com. Eternal Perspective
Randy, Hultgren. (Americans should not have to pay for abortions through Obama Care). Should
abortions be illegal? January, 2012. Web. November, 2014.
Ronald, Bailey. (Do fetuses feel pain?) Reason.com. July 12, 2013. Web. November, 2015.
Matthew, Clark. (How Obama Care uses Taxpayer). ACLJ.com. 2012. Web. November, 2015
Joseph M. Scheidler (Pro-life action league). Where we stand. May, 2010. Web. November,
2015.
Louise, Melling. (Common Hopes). Daily Kos, Jan. 22, 2009
Wendy, Koch. (USA today about adoption shortage). Center in advanced studies in child
welfare. January, 2013. Web. November, 2015.
Willard, Cates. Guttmacher Institute). The Public Health Impact of Legal Abortion: 30 Years
Later. January/February, 2003. Web. November, 2015.