Roe v. Wade established women’s constitutional rights to decide whether we will carry pregnancies to term. It is unconstitutional to impose any ban on abortions. Yet on Wednesday May 13, Congress voted 242 to 184 to ban abortions after 20 weeks of gestation. The ban will make it impossible for women to abort babies that are seriously ill, fail to develop properly or when a pregnancy threatens the mom’s life.
Don’t get me wrong – I hate the idea of aborting a fetus this far advanced in term. But this is an important point: doctors who could perform an abortion of this type probably hate it more, so it will always be difficult to find a doctor willing to perform a late term abortion. Except when there is clear medical need.
The person who will suffer most in a 20 week abortion is the mom: the person who will carry for her entire life the memory of the termination decision, the procedure and the loss of her baby’s life. There’s no way this can be anything but difficult.
These are the reasons we need to make sure that Roe v. Wade is upheld and that a woman can choose to terminate an advanced pregnancy if she feels that it threatens her own life or the welfare of her unborn child.
Planned Parenthood shares testimony from mothers who have needed this type of abortion, along with thought provoking information about the issue.
You can also sign their petition to be a Clinic Defender.
I know Shamgar, it seems so brutal! But it seems that really, doctors are only willing at this stage when the mother or child’s health is at great risk … mother might die of complications or baby be born with serious illness or disability …
BTW, Mrs. Waye’s daughter Nance Waye Reeves lost her husband a few days ago.
I find this problematic. I absolutely believe in a woman’s choice… but (he says tentatively) 20 weeks is 5 months into the pregnancy, That’s more then half way through. Hmm it seems very late on. I think it should be fast and easy and cheap to get an early abortion but I find it worrying so late on. ???