What about back-alley abortions?
A common argument used in the pro-abortion debate is the "back-alley" abortion. This argument says that laws banning abortions will not actually stop abortions. Instead women will seek out abortions from untrained individuals in unsanitary conditions. Many women will die as a result, and keeping abortions legal will prevent this tragedy.
I agree with this argument. If abortions are made illegal, then yes, some people will get them anyway, and they won't always be done in the most medically sound ways. Sooner or later a pregnant woman will be seriously injured or die as a result.
Does this mean that we should not, therefore, make abortions illegal? No.
We have all sorts of laws in this nation, and all of them are broken. We have laws making it illegal to murder someone. We have laws making it illegal to steal someone's belongings. We have laws making it illegal to drive faster than the posted speed limit. We have many laws, and they are all broken. Many of them are not broken by professional criminals either. For instance, many citizens cheat on their taxes (a crime) and speed when they drive, almost as if it was their god given right to do so.
However no one advocates removing these laws, as they serve a moral code and the public good.
As a pro-life advocate, I do not support legal abortions anymore than I would support the legalized murder of anyone. Some pregnant woman will eventually be desperate enough to get a back-alley abortion, and my heart breaks for that woman. I love women and would never want to see this become a reality. However in my heart I cannot justify the killing of millions of unborn babies each year on the sole premise that it would prevent back-alley abortions. Both are tragedies, but abolishing legal abortions will save the most lives.
I choose to love life... the life of the unborn and the life of the pregnant woman. My hope and prayer is that pregnant women will turn to support agencies for help instead of seeking back-alley abortions, but even if a few eventually do (which is likely at some point) there are many, many, many more women who will not get abortions once they are illegal, and this will preserve and protect the most lives, those of our nation's unborn children.
I agree with this argument. If abortions are made illegal, then yes, some people will get them anyway, and they won't always be done in the most medically sound ways. Sooner or later a pregnant woman will be seriously injured or die as a result.
Does this mean that we should not, therefore, make abortions illegal? No.
We have all sorts of laws in this nation, and all of them are broken. We have laws making it illegal to murder someone. We have laws making it illegal to steal someone's belongings. We have laws making it illegal to drive faster than the posted speed limit. We have many laws, and they are all broken. Many of them are not broken by professional criminals either. For instance, many citizens cheat on their taxes (a crime) and speed when they drive, almost as if it was their god given right to do so.
However no one advocates removing these laws, as they serve a moral code and the public good.
As a pro-life advocate, I do not support legal abortions anymore than I would support the legalized murder of anyone. Some pregnant woman will eventually be desperate enough to get a back-alley abortion, and my heart breaks for that woman. I love women and would never want to see this become a reality. However in my heart I cannot justify the killing of millions of unborn babies each year on the sole premise that it would prevent back-alley abortions. Both are tragedies, but abolishing legal abortions will save the most lives.
I choose to love life... the life of the unborn and the life of the pregnant woman. My hope and prayer is that pregnant women will turn to support agencies for help instead of seeking back-alley abortions, but even if a few eventually do (which is likely at some point) there are many, many, many more women who will not get abortions once they are illegal, and this will preserve and protect the most lives, those of our nation's unborn children.
