Abortions in College

In three weeks Sarah will leave for college. She broke up with her boyfriend last week and today she found out she was pregnant. Should Sarah have an abortion, or stop her plans in order to have a baby at eighteen? On January 22, 1973 the landmark Roe vs. Wade decision made abortion a constitutional right.

Legally Sarah can have an abortion, but it has become a social issue that has become a large controversy. Abortions among college students are not widely accepted. According to a Planned Parenthood study done in 1997, forty percent of seventeen year olds will become pregnant before their twenty-fifth birthday. That statistic is directed to college age women. Should abortions be easily accepted among college students? My own viewpoint is yes , abortions should become more easily accepted among college students.

The main question facing society is the definition of a fetus point of living. Even the Constitution gives no clear answer. The Constitution uses words like born or naturalized, that being interpreted to mean that the rights are protected once the fetus is born. Pro-lifers say that from the moment of conception the fetus is a person and therefore is a bearer of human rights, a fertilized embryo is the foundation for a living human being . The other side says that the embryonic tissue is not living on its own; therefore it does not have human rights, the fetus is only a potential human being, and we confuse actual with potential . The fetus cannot live outside of the mother; it is part of the mother.

No conclusion has been made as to the exact moment when the fetus becomes a baby; it is a large gray area. So who is right and who is wrong? When is a fetus considered a baby? Who makes the definition of a human being? These are questions that will most likely never be answered. In coming to a compromise both sides need to accept and respect each other s views and know that there will never be an easy answer.

Can college students handle the emotional responsibility of having a child? Most women who have gone through an unwanted pregnancy remember feeling anger, guilt, shame, self-judgment, fear and depression. Entering college is a new experience for teenagers that involve a new sense of freedom and responsibility. College students are learning to budget their time studying and experiencing life. College students have too much emotional strain and stress on without having to deal with an unwanted pregnancy. Having a child brings a whole new sense of responsibility that I do not believe college students are ready for. The added stress of morning sickness, mood swings, weight gain, and planning leave a huge emotional strain on all women. Pro-lifers argue that if one is responsible enough to have sex, one should be responsible enough to deal with the consequences. I am in agreement that one should be responsible, but unwanted pregnancies are much to common to do away with abortion.

Abortion may be a personal choice, but there are many factors that go into the decision. Being socially shunned because of the decision to have an abortion does not help any situation. Girls in college have their whole lives ahead of them and if their decision is to have an abortion, they should be socially accepted.