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When Does Life Begin Research Paper

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When Does Life Begin? Abortion is one of the most controversial topics in the world. Some think it is wrong, some think it is right. Another topic is when life begins. Some say it begins at conception, and some say it begins around week 23 of development. Either way, having a law against abortion is unconstitutional and restricts women the right to their body. In December of 1970, two graduates of the University of Texas Law School filed a lawsuit about a Texas law criminalizing abortions for non-medical reasons. They were the lawyers of Norma McCorvey, or Jane Roe, who claimed that the law violated her Constitutional rights. The lawsuit was filed against District Attorney Henry Wade in a Texas federal court. She also said that she was not wealthy enough to travel out of Texas. The court ruled that the law was unconstitutional. Wade appealed to the supreme court. At this time, most states banned abortions. …show more content…

It is a moral right of women to decide what to do with their own bodies. Enforcing a law on abortion will not only violate the Fourteenth Amendment, but it will also drive many poor women to go to illegal abortionists. Doing so would compromise their health and safety. Finally, fetuses do not seem to develop personhood until around weeks 22-24 of pregnancy. This is the time where they can be taken from the womb and have a chance of a long lasting life with proper care, or the point of viability. They do not apply as a person with rights before this time, as they are not true human beings. They are inside the mother, who has all the right to her

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Another relevant United States Supreme Court case is Doe v. Bolton. In 1968 the Georgia legislature passed a law outlawing abortion except where an abortion doctor determines that the continuation of the pregnancy would endanger the mother 's life or seriously and permanently injure her health, that the baby would be born with a grave mental or physical defect, or that the pregnancy resulted from rape. “Mary Doe” (Sandra Cano), who was 9 weeks pregnant filed suit claiming she was entitled to an abortion under the Constitution because she would not be able to support another child since she already had three children. Several abortion doctors, nurses, clergy, and social workers joined in her suit. The Supreme Court agreed and ended up creating

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Prior to the case it was the state that determined the legality of abortions. Jane Roe, (alias), was an unmarried and pregnant Texas citizen in 1970. She wanted to have an abortion, but Texas abortion law made it a felony to abort a fetus unless “on medical advice for the purpose of saving the life of the mother.” Roe filed suit against Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County, Texas to challenge the law outlawing abortion. At the time, many states had outlawed abortion except in cases where the mother’s life was in danger.

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Supreme Court case of Roe V. Wade was first argued on December 13, 1971. Roe, a Texas woman, challenge the constitutionality of the Texas abortion law and making abortion illegal in the United States. Texas law made abortion a crime except when necessary to save the life of the mother. On the other hand, Roe believed that she " had a fundamental right to privacy." Roe argued that the Texas abortion law violated her right of the 9th and 14th amendments of the United States Constitution.

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One of the more well known ones was in 1970 through 1973. This was known as Roe versus Wade. Jane Roe filed a lawsuit against Henry Wade because she believed she had a right to terminate her pregnancy and not have to travel of the state of Texas to do so. She thought Texas making abortion illegal, violated the constitution and her rights to privacy. It was said that it is a woman’s decision to continue with the pregnancy or not.

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Justice Harry A. Blackmun was chosen by the court to write the majority opinion. However, Blackmun argued that a majority opinion could not be decided yet because abortion rights were obscure in the constitution. In addition, the Court had not deliberated whether abortion was a fundamental right; therefore, Blackmun suggested that the court wait to rehear the case with all nine justices present to determine a definite opinion. On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Jane Roe and agreed that the Texas law was unconstitutional because women have the right to put an end to their pregnancy as guaranteed in the Due Process Clause, which secured the right to privacy. Overall, the Supreme Court stated that it was not in the interest of the state to make regulations regarding abortion rights in a woman’s first trimester of pregnancy and only licensed physicians were able to perform abortions under proper medical

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Originalists and minimalists continue to challenge the ruling of Roe v. Wade, even till present day. Minimalists believe that the court approached the issues of the case through a unnecessary approach. Besides granting abortion rights to women, the court also implemented a complex trimester system, which specified what is and what is not allowed during each three-month time interval of a pregnancy. The Texas law that was challenged in Roe v. Wade, was extreme to say the least. It banned the right to an abortion even in difficult situation where the pregnancy results from rape or incest, and pregnancies that would potentially lead to detrimental health concerns for both the mother- to be and the fetus.

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This does not make sense, because the fetus does not have feelings or a life until they are outside the uterus. Society still insists that fetuses are superior to the mother, which is false. A bill has been revived that has banned abortion after the twentieth week of pregnancy, and most of Americans support it ("House Republicans"). This bill is still in effect and should be taken into consideration based off of the improvements in women’s rights and abortions. Another point is late-term abortion specifically is wrong because the fetus is more developed at the twentieth week, which is defined as late-term, and can be identified in sex and if there are any complications; therefore personifying the once small fetus.

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With almost half the nation divided among their views, abortion remains one of the most controversial topics in our society. Since Roe v. Wade, our views in society as well as following court cases have been progressing toward the woman’s right to choose. The precedent set by Roe v. Wade made the Supreme Court acknowledge that it cannot rule specifically when life begins and it also affirms that it is the woman’s right to have an abortion under the 14th Amendment. In the 1st Amendment, the Establishment Clause forbids the government from passing laws “which aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another”. Many Christian pro-lifers use their religious beliefs to dispute when life begins.

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The Right to Abortion On January 22, 1973, in a 7-2 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down it’s landmark decision in the case of Roe v. Wade, which recognized that the constitutional right to privacy extends to a woman’s right to make her own personal medical decisions — including the decision to have an abortion without interference from politicians (Planned Parenthood). There are many moments in history when Roe v. Wade has been so close to being overturned, yet it is still in place. Abortion should stay legal, or not overturned, for the health of women everywhere. First, this important case took place at the time of abortion being illegal in most states, including Texas, where Roe v. Wade began.

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The topic of abortion is one of the most controversial issues in today's society. According to Planned Parenthood, "Abortion is the termination or expulsion of pregnancy before birth" (Planned Parenthood). Thousands of abortions happen every day, and yet the public opinion remains at a stalemate to determine whether or not an abortion is ethical. According to a poll created in 2013, fifty-four percent of Americans believe that the practice of abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

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Doris Gudino Professor Chounlamountry Political Science 1 27 July 2015 Pro-Choice Anyone? A woman has, undoubtedly, the freedom to procreate, but once a woman chooses to retreat from that freedom, a commotion arises. Abortion is a woman’s choice for many reasons. It’s her body, therefore, no one else can decide for said person.

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The motivations for anti-abortion laws varied from state to state. But in 1973 the supreme court “recognized that the constitutional right to privacy extends to a woman’s right to make her own personal medical decisions — including the decision to have an abortion without interference from politicians. ”(Planned Parenthood Roe) This was called Roe v. Wade.

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For the last couple of years, americans have been deeply polarized over the issue of abortion. They debate has been cast in terms of “ pro-life” views and “pro-choice” views. The legality of abortion was confirmed in 1973 when the United States Supreme Court struck down a Texas

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Why Abortion Should Be Illegal Abortion has been a popular debate in the United States, especially after the Supreme Court ruling in 1973 stating a woman has the right to an abortion. In my opinion, abortion is wrong and very unethical. There are some specific instances where abortion may be acceptable, but for the most part, abortion is an evil act. Abortion should be illegal because it is the killing of an innocent human, even if he or she has not been born yet.

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