Abortion

    Above: Abortion-rights activists argue with an anti-abortion activist (R) in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on June 25, 2022 in Washington, DC.  Image copyright: Aaron Kittredge via Pexels

    The Spin

    Left narrative

    Access to safe abortions is fundamental to the principle of human autonomy and crucial to women's mental and physical health. Banning abortions will do very little other than strip women of their rights to bodily autonomy, put their health and safety at risk, and disproportionately affect marginalized communities that don't have the means to seek the essential treatment elsewhere.

    Right narrative

    The central question in the abortion debate is when human life begins. Even if not yet fully developed, an unborn child is human and to take their life is morally reprehensible. Unborn children should have the same right to bodily autonomy that pro-abortionists demand for women. Elected state legislators must pursue all options to protect unborn lives.

    Cynical narrative

    What started off as a moral debate on women's rights versus unborn babies rights has morphed into a cynical strategy for winning elections: both sides focus on rare situations that account for only about one in a hundred abortions (either very late-term abortions or unusual reasons such as rape, incest, and fetal abnormalities) to rile up their political base and drive voter turnout.


    The Controversies



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