Abortion access

The morality of abortion, access
to abortion, biases, & definitions

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About the morality of, and access to, abortion:

There are two main questions concerning abortion:

1. Whether a decision to have an abortion is moral for an individual woman, given her specific situation. This might include consideration of her religious beliefs, age, marital status, health, economic status, available support systems, genetic makeup, etc.
    
2. If, after a woman has consulted with her physician and perhaps her spiritual advisor and has decided to seek an abortion, whether the government should veto her decision.
    

Those promoting a pro-life or anti-abortion position say that the government should override a woman's decision to have an abortion in some, many, or all cases, and require her to continue her pregnancy to childbirth. Most pro-lifers base their stance on the belief that human life, in the form of an ovum and spermatozoon, becomes a human person during the process of conception. Thus, a human pre-embryo, embryo and fetus are all persons entitled to fundamental human rights, including the most basic right: to be allowed to live. The lives of two humans are being considered here: that of the woman and her the life of the pre-embryo, embryo, or fetus.

Those promoting a pro-choice position say that the government should not interfere with the woman's decision, or should do so only under very rare circumstances. She should be able to have an abortion in many, most or all cases. Most pro-choicers base their stance on the belief that human life becomes a human person at some time after conception -- perhaps when the embryo's heart starts beating, or when the fetus first looks human, or it becomes sentient, or it has half emerged from its mother's body, or is born, or is severed from its mother and is functioning independently. They feel that a woman should not be forced to go through a pregnancy and childbirth if she does not choose to do so. She should be allowed to have an abortion if it is done before her embryo or fetus attains personhood.

It is important to realize that both the pro-life, anti-abortion and pro-choice positions cover a range of individual beliefs and advocacy. Most of the media are wrong: there is no single pro-life/anti-abortion position and no single pro-choice position.

Essentially all other web sites reflect the position of the webmaster or sponsoring agency. This web site is different. We attempt to present a balanced picture of all aspects of and all views on abortion. Because of this, you will probably find some parts of our essays infuriating even as you will affirm the accuracy of other parts.

About biases:

Almost all websites on the Internet that discuss abortion are either strongly pro-life/anti-abortion or pro-choice. Some are seriously lacking in objectivity and accuracy. Some distort data; others ignore information that contradicts their views.

If you feel that we have missed our goal in any of our abortion essays, please E-mail us, and include both the file name (e.g. abortion.htm) and your specific concern. However, if you merely object to having all viewpoints explained on this site, please don't write us. This section of our web site generates a lot of Emails containing raw hatred and we would prefer to not receive more of that type. Please direct your hatred to pro-choice or pro-life web sites.

About definitions:

Various groups define pregnancy and abortion-related terms differently. This can make dialogue and even elementary communication very difficult.

	Most pro-life/anti-abortion and conservative Christian groups follow one set of definitions.
	Physicians, medical researchers, and most pro-choice groups and mainline or liberal religious groups often define words differently.

In this series of essays, we will generally use the medical definitions, because they are in widest use.

Three key terms used throughout this section are:

	Human life: This is "any living cell or collection of living cells that contains DNA from the species homo sapiens." 1 This includes an ovum, a spermatozoon, zygote, embryo, fetus, newborn, infant, child, youth, adult, and elder. It also includes a breast cancer cell, a living hair follicle, and a recent skin scraping. Some forms of human life, like an individual ovum or spermatozoon, are rarely considered to be of value, except by couples having difficulty conceiving. Other forms of human life, like a newborn, infant, or adult are priceless; medical professionals go to great lengths to preserve their life.
	Human person: A human life that is granted civil rights, including the right to live. People have different opinions about the point at which human life becomes a human person. There is a societal consensus that a newborn is a human person. However, people disagree about whether a zygote, embryo, or fetus is also a human person. This is the main point of disagreement that causes conflicts over abortion access.
	Start of pregnancy: Pro-lifers typically define pregnancy as starting at conception. Pro-choicers and the medical profession usually define it as starting when the zygote is fully implanted in the wall of the uterus. We use the medical definition in this section.
	Abortion: We define abortion as the "purposeful termination of pregnancy with intention other than to produce a live born infant or to remove a dead fetus." 3 This is one of many conflicting definitions in common use.

It is important to realize that when one group defines something differently from another group, this does not make one group clueless, ignorant. backwards, etc. They are simply two groups using differing definitions. This happens often in areas where religion impacts people's sexual behavior, as in abortion access, rights of persons with a minority sexual orientation or gender identity, access to marriage, etc.

Disclaimer:

This, and similar medical information on our web site, is intended as a general educational aid to the public. If the topics covered are of direct concern to you, we recommend that you consult a qualified healthcare professional who can review your unique situation before offering an opinion.

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Three footnotes:

1. We use the popular meaning of "life" here to include ova and spermatozoa. Some scientists use a very strict definition of the word "life"... which does not include ova and spermatozoa because they cannot, by themselves, reproduce.
2. An interesting and unbiased article titled "The Abortion Debate" is available at: http://www.quickoverview.com/
3. "SCAN Pregnancy: Definitions," Division of Biostatistics and Health GIS, Government of South Carolina, at: http://scangis.dhec.sc.gov/

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Copyright © 1996 to 2010 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally published: 1996-DEC-20
Last updated 2010-MAR-10
Author: Bruce A Robinson

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