Crossfire: Abortion should be illegal.

Editor’s note: The following opinions expressed in this Crossfire do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the authors but merely serve as a vehicle for debate.

Abby Stoltzfus

Berlin

YES

In the United States today, abortion is legal in all 50 states because of the Supreme Court Case, Roe vs. Wade in 1973.

On Jan. 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court struck down the Texas law banning abortions, leading to a nationwide legalization of abortion.

In 2019, states regulate abortion restrictions, some depending on the time of the pregnancy, the reason of the pregnancy, or the mother’s health. But it is clear and simple. Abortion is murder.

Abortion is the act of deliberate termination of a human pregnancy. Murder is illegal in all 50 states, with no restrictions. Why is killing a baby any different?

A baby’s heartbeat can be detected at five-and-a-half to six weeks after gestation. At week six, the baby’s nose, mouth, fingers, and toes are beginning to form. A baby can hear her mother’s voice at 23 weeks.

Many states have passed “the heartbeat bill,” where if a heartbeat is detected, abortion is illegal. However, there are other states such as New York, that have passed laws for the baby to be aborted minutes before birth.

A fully developed child, killed minutes before it is given the chance to take his or her first breath.

Abortions are cruel and painful. Abortion is not an option and it is not “a mother’s right” to take another life that is not her own.

Many argue that abortions should be legal in some cases, such as where it puts the mother’s health at risk. Even if you may be putting the mother at risk, the baby is not even getting a chance. Take the risk and save a life.

Other’s use the debate, “what about rape cases?” It’s no one’s fault the mother was abused, so don’t take the pain out on the baby. Don’t victimize the unborn child too, you are not alone.

There are mothers and parents everywhere hoping and praying for a baby through the adoption system, a child they can call their own. There are many Pro-Life organizations, including Save the Storks and American Life League, that help mothers who are considering abortion.

Save the Storks have “Stork Buses” where they offer free ultrasounds to mothers, so they can see their baby, in hopes of saving an unborn life. Abortion is not the only option and you are not alone; someone is willing to help.

Whether it be because of an unplanned pregnancy or some other unforeseen circumstance, the option of killing a child should never be available. More than 50 million lives have been ripped at the seams since 1973 due to abortion. Stop the mass murder, stop the cruelty, stop the lies, and choose life.

Allison Johnson

Rockwood

NO

In 1973 the United States Supreme Court recognized the right to an abortion as law of the land; however, abortion rights have never really stopped being under threat.

Take, for example, Alabama. In May, the governor of Alabama signed into law a draconian bill that could punish doctors who perform abortions with life in prison, but getting an abortion was already nearly inaccessible to many women living in Alabama.

According to “The Atlantic”, in 2014, 93% of Alabama counties had no clinics that provide abortions.

If there are no clinics that provide abortions, then women will turn to unsafe procedures as a dangerous alternative.

If we make abortion illegal, then women who have experienced rape or incest would have no other option but to follow through with their emotionally and physically devastating pregnancy.

Other scenarios to carefully consider are pregnancies that are serious threats to the safety of the mother, or if the doctors know that a fetus has very severe defects and conditions. The list goes on and on.

If people are allowed to become parents when they want and how they want without interference from the government, then why should it not be the same for an abortion?

All in all, we need to focus on the common ground of reducing the number of abortions.

Whether that be through education and prevention or a woman’s access to birth control.