The topic of abortion has been debated in society for decades — especially in the realms of politics and religion. Whether someone is pro-choice, pro-life or anti-abortion, it is important to consider the arguments on all sides of the aisle. However, I believe there is an upstanding winner in this debate: Abortion is wrong morally and legally. 

One of the most common points on the pro-choice side of the debate is the fact that the mother should have every right to choose what she does with her body. This is true in all aspects of her life, but the baby she has inside her womb is not her body, nor is it her life to dictate. Pregnant women do not have two hearts, 20 fingers or two separate sets of DNA — one heart, 10 fingers and a unique set of DNA belong to the fetus.

No one should have the power to assign value to an individual regardless of their developmental stage in life. The woman had choices before she became pregnant. She could have used various forms of birth control — or even avoided intercourse altogether. 

Even after conception, adoption is still a choice that is arguably better than abortion. One of my dearest friends was adopted as a baby and she is extremely grateful for the life she has been given. If her biological mother had chosen to predetermine the quality of her life as most pro-choice activists do, she would never have been able to live the fulfilling life she has thus far. Every single fetus that has been conceived has its own set of special DNA and should be treated as the life it is.

While over 99% of performed abortions are due to a lack of planning and precautions, the remaining 1% is due to rape. This scenario is more complicated and unfortunate, but the argument that abortion is wrong remains. The actions of rapists should not determine the fate of the unborn. Allowing a pregnancy to continue when a woman is raped is not the same thing as forcing the woman to be pregnant. The only person who forced pregnancy onto the woman is the rapist who will or should be charged for his crime. The occurrence of pregnancy as a result of rape is typically seen as a burden, but the wrongful act of rape does not justify another wrongful act like abortion. The rapist is guilty of forcing something onto the woman, but the baby that came, as a result, is innocent. 

Another commonly used argument to defend abortion is the fact that the baby inside the womb is completely dependant on the mother and should not be treated as its own being until it can fend for itself outside the womb. A fetus is completely reliant on the mother while in the womb, but that level of reliance does not suddenly change once the baby is born. A newborn child needs constant care until the moment it learns to fend for itself.

As medicine continues to develop, it is becoming more possible for babies to survive when born prematurely. All trimesters of pregnancy blend together and there is no definitive point in time that a baby can survive outside the womb. It is all dependent on medicine and the baby’s personal point of development.  For this reason, all trimesters of pregnancy should be treated the same.

Most people would argue that ending the life of an individual on life support is wrong even though they are reliant on machines to keep them alive. It is the same concept for pregnancy. As long as a fetus is not harming the mother, there should be no other reason to end the life.

Abortion also allows people to change their lifestyle because they no longer have to fear the repercussions a sexually active way of life entails. Instead of turning to abortion for unwanted pregnancies, we as a nation should be looking for solutions to better the lives of people who feel they would be better off killing their children.