The Value Of Human Life

The Value of Human Life

The issue of abortion has risen to become one of the most prominent arguments in the United States over the past few decades. Unfortunately, for the past few decades, the practice of abortion has been recognized as a fundamental human right by the government of our country. In a sea of selfishness, disregard for human life, and desire for personal gain, it would seem appropriate to label abortion as the epitome of many Americans today. As it is the deliberate killing of the most defenseless among us, abortion is not only morally wrong, but it should also be legally wrong.

There are three main questions that are basic to the entire abortion controversy. The first is associated with women's rights and whether or not a woman should have the right to do what she wants with beings that are relying on her. The pro-choice movement would say that women should have the right to do what they want with "their" bodies in an attempt to justify a woman aborting her child. What this argument fails to recognize is that abortion affects more than just the woman. Abortion directly kills an unborn human being; this is the "body" that is being affected by abortion, not the woman's. When you look at the consequences of each side, either giving birth to a baby or having an abortion, it is apparent that the consequences of abortion are death to the unborn fetus, while the consequences of pregnancy cannot compare to the killing of a human being. Therefore, women are not choosing what they want to do with "their" bodies when they have an abortion; they are choosing what to do with a defenseless human being. This defenseless unborn human is relying on the woman as a direct result of the woman's/couple's actions. The woman/couple chose to have sex, and with that comes taking responsibility for the consequences. With this, the pro-choice movement would argue that sex is more than just for having children. Yes, it can be for pleasure as well, but why must abortion be the go-to strategy if you want to have sex simply for pleasure? There are other options - adoption, pregnancy crisis help-lines, crisis pregnancy centers, childcare, safe sex. These are options that can be taken advantage of. Even if the child is being born into unfortunate circumstances, it should still be given the chance to live. Nothing can outweigh this gift.

The second question basic to the abortion controversy is whether or not the fetus is a human life. The first part of proving that the fetus is a human life is proving that it is in fact alive. Being alive means that the being is growing, developing, maturing, and replacing its own dying cells. From the moment of conception, this process begins to happen. As soon as the sperm meets an egg, a genetic identity is formed and the building process of the life form begins. It becomes alive at this very moment. Since it is in fact alive, the next step is to prove that the fetus is in fact a human. A human being is one of the biological beings known as a Homo Sapien that are distinct from other life forms in that they contain 46 chromosomes in every cell. A fetus is a developing form of this species, and is therefore a human being. Since the fetus is alive, and since it is a human, then it should be considered a person protected under the law of the United States. Unfortunately, it is not and is rather regarded as a clump of cells, an obviously false generalization. If it were in fact simply a clump of cells that did not develop into anything then it should deserve little respect or consideration, and the primary concern should be placed on the mother's well being. But the fact is that the fetus is more than just a clump of cells, as it is a living human being developing into the complete mature form of human life. Saying it is okay to destroy the fetus before it is born simply because it is relying on the mother is like saying it is okay to kill a child of a couple months old. Even after the child is born, it is contingent on the mother in order to live and it has not matured into a completely mature human. Therefore, an unborn fetus and a young child are, in essence, in the same situation. It is not morally nor should it be legally right to kill it at either time.

The final and most important question in regards to the abortion controversy is if we should grant equal protection by law to all living humans in our nation or if we should allow discrimination against entire classes of these living humans. Pro-choice advocates argue that fetuses should not be given equal protection by law because they are not in fact human beings, but as I have already proven, this statement is entirely false. The unborn child is developing into a mature human. This developing stage is the first stage as a human being. A fetus is in fact a human being, and as such, it should be protected under the law of the United States. Therefore, since fetuses should be protected under the law as a human being, abortion should be considered murder, as it is the deliberate killing of the fetus, a human being.

The problem is that