The Morality of Abortion: Should Roe Vs. Wade Be Overturned?

In 1973, the United States Supreme Court delivered an historic ruling, one that is rife with political and moral controversy. The Court declared that it is legally permissible for a woman to undergo an abortion. This decision spawned many belligerent debates, the effects of which are perhaps felt more strongly today than at the actual time of judgment.

The dispute centers on a variety of morally charged issues, the most basic questioning whether it is ethically correct to perform an abortion, which entails removing a fetus from a woman's uterus, essentially erasing any potential of it becoming a full fledged human being. However, many believe that controlling what occurs in one's own body constitutes a basic birthright allotted to both women and men. The evaluations of the subject by various individuals tends to be wildly disparate. This clashing of polarized viewpoints has, and does, result in such extreme actions as picketing, protesting and even the politically motivated murder of abortion doctors.

The Roe vs. Wade decision occurred amidst controversy in 1973. Before 1970, most states observed laws prohibiting abortions. However, during the 1970's, movements to legalize abortion began to gain ground in state legislatures, before culminating in the famed Supreme Court ruling. This ruling ascertained that a woman possesses a constitutional right to abortion during the majority of her pregnancy. Although this verdict was indeed a landmark for abortion rights activists, it has come under much scrutiny over the years. There have been numerous setbacks, and even today the abortion debates continue to surface in state legislatures, Congress and the White House. Thirty years after the momentous ruling, Roe vs. Wade still runs the risk of being overturned.