Abortionis one of the biggest issues surrounding the American political scene for decades. Being Pro-Life or Pro-Choice is highly controversial and sparks heated, passionate debate. There is always the traditional fight of: is it a human life or is it a woman's decision regarding her body? This has led Pro-Life advocaters toprotest outside of abortion clinics and harass women making the decision to abort. Pro-Choice advocaters to come back with harsh responses and exploit the women who make the decision to abort. The thing is, abortion is an issue that's more complex than these black or white depictions. Simply standing outside a building and yelling about human life and women's health does not delve into the social and economic problems behind abortion.
In the United States 75% of those who receive an abortion are either low income or below the poverty line. Of those getting abortions 59% are given to women who already have children, and 60% are given to women in their twenties. The leading demographic that receives abortions are Caucasians with 39%. That leaves the remaining 61% to be among minorities, the leading minority being African Americans with 28%. These are a lot of statistics and they may seem fairly pointless, but really think about what this data displays. Those who are getting abortions are not privileged members of society who are easily able to take care of their children. The women getting abortions are women who already have a more difficult start in life. These are women who do not have money to begin with, and whose only option is a free abortion, or at least a cheap option, versus the expense of going through a pregnancy. Now, let's also remember, some of these women were raped, some of these women got into situations before they know the full consequences, and many United States citizens have gotten no real sexual education at all. Now, what do we do about this?
For the Pro-Life movement, the response to abortion has been to protest, convince people they are sinning, and work to make abortion illegal. The Pro-Choice movement advocates for more abortion rights, more funding for groups like Planned Parenthood and more education concerning women’s health. Both sides have flaws, but there is one issue neither side is actually addressing. One of the biggest solutions for preventing abortions if you are Pro-Life and for truly empowering women if you are Pro-Choice is to aid in getting them out of poverty before they are stuck in a situation that creates the need to get an abortion. The problem with abortion is that all either side looks at is the pregnancy itself and not the life after pregnancy or the lives that created the pregnancy. Just telling someone who can barely take care of themselves in their situation that the joy of their new child is enough to not get an abortion does not truly understand the weight this new life has on their current situation. Some women simply see no other way because the choice is either raising a child they actually may want in poverty or aborting and helping the child escape it early, and many choose to abort. If we focus on educating and empowering women to be self sufficient, women will not feel so trapped by a pregnancy. Why not give women another choice, the choice to feel empowered and capable of taking care of a child. Many women are not getting abortions because they want to, they are getting abortions because it is their only feasible answer and instead of giving them a job or an education, we yell in their face that they are either going to Hell or making a stand for women everywhere. The thing is, many women aren't making a stand for anything, they're just making one more difficult and in some cases regretful decision in a life filled with disappointment.
So, what does it look like to actually help those in these situations? One huge way is to create programs for single mothers that would give them an education or a job. Setting up free daycares or community centers help mothers not have to worry about leaving their child home alone, and it could help educate those at risk and give them positive places to go. Especially for young, twenty something, single mothers, they feel as if they have no future with a child but they shouldn't. They should know they have avenues to still lead a successful life and even though it will still take work, they should feel secure they aren't done for. That's how we actually prevent abortion and empower women.