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Final Research Essay
Final Research Essay
Jennifer Sleigh
Professor Kretzer
English 1201
24 November 2019
Research Essay
In the United States, there are approximately 125,000 abortions performed daily. This is a
lot, considering many states are preventing people from getting them. I have chosen abortion as
my topic because I believe strongly that any and everyone should be able to access an abortion if
they need or want one. Without abortion, many women would be stuck with a child they either
didn’t want or can’t afford to have. Abortion should remain legal and safe for everyone in all
Roe V. Wade made it so that abortion was legal in every state. This happened back in
1973, when the Supreme Court ruled that abortions should be a woman’s choice. Before abortion
was legal, many women had back-alley abortions. Abortion, a medical procedure was being done
by non-medical personnel. This caused many women to be sent to the emergency room because
of complications. Although some doctors performed private abortions, records were hardly kept.
The Pro-Choice website states that there were an estimated 1.2 million illegal abortions
Speaking of illegal abortions, many women are still getting abortions outside of a medical
office. The New York Times did a piece on how America’s abortion rate might be higher than we
realize (Miller). Women are getting “invisible” abortions by getting pills illicitly to get rid of
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their pregnancy. No one knows exactly what is in these pills, but that they can cause harm to
This is a reason abortion should remain legal. Those in states that have restricted or
banned abortions are going out and getting them any other way that they can. This puts many
women at risk for injury or even death. Many people think of “self-managed” abortions are those
in which a coat hanger is used or back-alley procedures. But self-managed can be almost
anything. Many women use illicit drugs and prescription pills to pretty much induce a
miscarriage.
Many states have begun putting strict restrictions into place, like one in Ohio. A very
anti-abortion governor, John Kasich, vetoed one of these restrictions. The lawmakers were one
vote short on overriding the veto (Exstrum). This restriction would have made it so women who
are pregnant cannot get an abortion “after a fetal heartbeat is heard, which can happen as early as
six weeks into pregnancy”, when most women don’t know that they are pregnant until they reach
The article said that this would have been one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the
country. Making it nearly impossible for women to get an abortion in Ohio. The crucial “no”
came from Senator Mike Beagle. He said that “he didn’t think the bill met the standards
necessary to pass”. However, an incoming governor, Mike DeWine has stated that he is ready to
sign the legislature if the bill passes his desk next year. Meaning Ohio might just get one of the
Christmas of 2003 that it was successfully implemented. And in the time since it being legalized
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Nepal's statistics for complications have gone down drastically. There are much less issues with
infection and future complications. This is a good example of how legalizing abortion could be
Something that many people who are pro-life disregard, or are unaware of, are the needs
and welfare of the child after the mother has given birth. An article written by Marshall Medoff
addressed this issue. The article also stated that, unfortunately, there was no substantiated
evidence that people who are pro-life don’t know about this issue. However, there was evidence
regarding infants who were born into a pro-life state versus a pro-choice state.
Some of the evidence in the article is positive, like how babies born in a pro-life state are
less likely to be given up for adoption or put into the foster care system (Medoff). Though the
positive evidence is great, the negative evidence is eye-opening. The article states that pro-life
states have a higher infant mortality rate as well as a higher child death rate. This also comes
with less severe evidence such as children born in pro-life states are more likely to live in
In the opposing side, people who are pro-life, believe that abortion should be illegal.
Admittedly, many pro-lifers believe this because of their religion. There are many websites out
there that portray useful information. One that can be useful is a pro-life organization (Choice). I
used to be pro-life thinking that even a fetus should have rights. Though after straying from my
religion, I began to see clearly why abortion is necessary. Abortion is a necessary form of
healthcare.
In conclusion, abortion is a necessary part of not only women’s healthcare, but the
wellbeing of many children. Many women rely on abortions to rid themselves of unwanted
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pregnancies. Making abortion illegal will not stop women from having them, just make it harder
and much more dangerous for them to get one. Getting rid of abortions will only put more
Works Cited
https://prolifeaction.org/fact_type/pro-choice-arguments/.
Exstrum, Olivia. “Even Anti-Abortion Gov. Kasich Couldn't Sign This Extreme Abortion
heartbeat-abortion-ban-ohio-john-kasich-veto/.
Henderson, Jillian T., et al. “Effects of Abortion Legalization in Nepal, 2001–2010.” PLoS ONE,
https://prochoice.org/education-and-advocacy/about-abortion/history-of-abortion/.
Medoff, Marshall. “Pro-Choice Versus Pro-Life: The Relationship Between State Abortion
Policy and Child Well-Being in the United States.” Health Care for Women
doi:10.1080/07399332.2013.841699.
Miller, Claire Cain, and Margot Sanger-katz. “Why America's Abortion Rate Might Be Higher
Than It Appears.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 20 Sept. 2019,
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/20/upshot/abortion-pills-rising-
use.html?searchResultPosition=10.