Week 1- Abortions
This week, our politickers chose to talk about abortions. Since this issue is incorporated in all of the presidential candidates’ platforms and can change the lives of millions of men and women in this country, we wanted to hear what our youth had to say. After an info lesson conducted by Rajan Srinivasan, our followers had the opportunity to learn about its historical significance and both sides of the political spectrum while unraveling the stigmas that surround such stances. While defining key terms and explaining landmark cases including Roe v. Wade, Rajan discussed the central argument of this topic:
“when does the baby become a separate human being who should be afforded the rights and protections of any other human being?”- Rajan Srinivasan
To listen to the full session, check out the “Info Session #2: Abortion” on our Youtube channel or check our our highlight on our Instagram.
This is what some our followers thought:
A woman has the right to choose what she does with her body. Period. Abortion is one of those choices. A woman can choose to have an abortion or she can choose to keep her baby, but both options need to be available for all women. A new law, known as the “heartbeat bill,” that was passed in states like Alabama and Ohio has prevented women from having that choice. The heartbeat bill essentially states that a women cannot have an abortion after 6 weeks because at that point in the pregnancy the fetal heartbeat can be detected. When a woman is 6 weeks pregnant, she most likely does not even know she is pregnant, making her options regarding terminating her pregnancy very limited. Regardless of your views on whether a heartbeat constitutes a life or not, a woman should have the option to terminate her pregnancy
- Naomi, 17, NJ
Abortion cannot be allowed on a purely ethical basis. The idea that a mother can, and has, killed an innocent child for no given reason is something we as a society cannot allow. It is akin to a society allowing rape, murder, gender discrimination, and many other problems: it is unethical. A fetus is still technically a living being, and we cannot just sit back and kill it. The children brought to full term can be put up for adoption or given away, why murder them? That is what I never understood - why murder them?
- Brandon, 17, NJ
Those who argue against abortion make zero sense. The medical choices of a woman should not be controlled by a government. Just as whether or not you get anything from a nose job or bypass surgery are 100% your choice, the option to get a medical procedure to remove a bundle of cells, which by the way is the same thing getting surgery to remove cancer is: just another bundle of cells, should be allowed and not controlled by the government. To classify a bundle of cells as a living breathing human being, on the same level of importance as a fully-grown woman is just downright stupid. Banning abortion is a total disregard for women's rights: something we have fought so hard for.
- Mary, 17, Fl
Nearly 1 in 4 US women will have an abortion by the age of 45, according to the Guttmacher Institute-- that’s roughly fifteen million women. Fifteen million women will need access to a safe and legal abortion by the time they reach the age of 45. So, shouldn’t the procedure be made as safe as possible? Women should be allowed to choose whether they want to have a child or not, up to a certain point in the pregnancy. I feel that the decision made in Roe v. Wade, and later in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, set reasonable parameters as to when women should be able to obtain an abortion. The Supreme Court ruled in the former that state governments can set abortion restrictions based on trimester--no restrictions in the first trimester, some restrictions in the second, and essentially unlimited restrictions in the third, provided that abortion is always allowed if the life of the mother is deemed at risk. In the latter ruling, this trimester system was overturned in favor of a new standard for abortion based on fetal viability. However, many state governments have passed new laws in regards to abortion that go against these Supreme Court rulings, in the hopes that the laws will be challenged by the courts and work their way back up to the Supreme Court and eventually overturn the initial rulings. These rulings should be upheld by the Courts, rather than continue to be challenged several decades after the initial rulings were passed. I strongly believe that access to safe and legal abortion should be a right granted to anyone who wishes to terminate their pregnancy (up to a certain point).
- Lilah, 17, NJ