Abortion Top Arguments For And Against

The debate over whether abortion should be a legal option has long divided people around the world. Split into two groups, pro-choice and pro-life, the two sides frequently clash in protests.

Proponents of legal abortion believe abortion is a safe medical procedure that protects lives, while abortion bans endanger pregnant people not seeking abortions, and deny bodily autonomy, creating wide-ranging repercussions.

Opponents of legal abortion believe abortion is murder because life begins at conception, that abortion creates a culture in which life is disposable, and that increased access to birth control, health insurance, and sexual education would make abortion unnecessary.Read more background…

Pro & Con Arguments
> Pro 1
Abortion is a safe medical procedure that protects lives.

> Pro 2
Abortion bans endangers healthcare for those not seeking abortions.

> Pro 3
Abortion bans deny bodily autonomy, creating wide-ranging repercussions.

> Con 1
Life begins at conception, making abortion murder.
Ending a life is murder legally and ethically, even a life that is only a few growing cells at the time of death.

> Con 2
Legal abortion promotes a culture in which life is disposable.

> Con 3
Increased access to birth control, health insurance, and sexual education would make abortion unnecessary.

Did You Know?1. Throughout much of Western history, abortion was not considered a criminal act as long as it was performed before “quickening” (the first detectable movement of the fetus, which can occur between weeks of pregnancy). [86]2. In 1821, Connecticut became the first US state to criminalize abortion. [90]3. The death rate for legal abortions is 0.7 deaths for every 100,000 abortions. By contrast, there are one to two deaths per 100,000 plastic surgery procedures, three deaths for every 100,000 colonoscopies, and three to six deaths per 100,000 tonsillectomies. Childbirth has nine deaths per 100,000 deliveries. [236]4. Abortion rates in the United States have fallen at what the CDC called a “slow yet steady pace” since a peak in 1981. That year there were 29.3 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44. The rate fell to 11.4 abortions per 1,000 women in 2019. [264] [251]5. 60% of women seeking abortions already had other children. [251]