Abortion Case

09-11-13

Abortion

Each year that goes by we celebrate that abortion decreases by a couple percentages, but we still have a substantial amount of numbers to reduce. Over several centuries ago woman would help one another give each other abortions. It was until the eighteen hundreds when trained woman would perform such procedures unauthorized. As time went on some states prohibited abortion, while most did not, unless it was to "save the life of the woman." The case that made the existing law of abortion was Roe v. Wade 1973, it decided that women have a constitutional right to abortion. The court stated, "the fetus is not a person but a "potential life," and thus does not have constitutional rights of its own."

The functionalists view abortion as an acceptable act. They may believe that it is a womans body and she has the right to do what she pleases with it. She should be able to make the decision on her own without the pressure of others. To the functionalist abortion has become a necessary aspect of society. Structural Functional approach might say that abortions help descend the population. It helps provide employment for teachers, lawyers, government officials, police officers, firemen, ect. Abortion may also prevent potential criminals from entering this world. Legalizing abortion also helps in the dangerous schemes of back alley abortions. This can potentially save the life of a mother. In order to make abortion safer the functionalists believe in legalizing it.

Social conflict sees abortion as less cost to individual families but less adults to support aged parents. Abortion may be considered a class issue because if one is from the lower class she might not be able to afford it, just as if a middle and upper class woman was in the same situation she would be able to. We can assume there is fewer unwanted babies in the middle and upper class versus a higher amount in the lower class. The poor economic strain would hold against the poor which will put this particular family in an even deeper hole then they may have already been in. This also majorly impacts teenage pregnancies, a teenager whom is in high school, pregnant, and receives an abortion she can finish school, go to college, and potentially make a great impact on her life, such as getting a job, making money, and later on having children when she has more money to support