Abortion: the most controversial issues in America
Nina Emmrich
English 1
Abortion
Guy Thorvaldsen
14, April 14, 2013
Abortion, this is one of the most controversial issues in America. It’s been an issue for over 200 years. In 1973 it was protected under law. But today it isn’t. Most American’s believe that it’s a sin to have an abortion while others see it as a choice to do it. There have been many legal cases against and also for abortion. Many have won but many have lost. This issue will never end. It will always be an argument. By having an abortion the mother is killing and innocent child who has no say in it. The family and father should also have a say in it as well.
A little before the 1800’s states practiced some form of the English Common Law which happened to also lack codification. Abortion and unwed pregnancy didn’t exist in this time period. Finding the history of abortion is more difficult than people can imagine because there aren’t very many records of it to go off of.
Starting in the 1600’s, there was the first conviction of the intent to abort a child. This went down in the state of Maryland, and then four years later another girl was arrested for murder because she had an abortion. This also happened in Maryland, but that case was dropped after the woman married the only witness who of course refused to testify. Another case that happened was in 1710 where Virginia Law made it a capital crime to be pregnant and then be found with a dead baby. In 1719 Delaware made it that anyone who counseled abortion or even infanticide an accessory to murder. According to Olasky’s notes “infanticide was probably the most frequent way of killing unwanted, illegitimate children”. “Abortifacients were known to and used in the early America. But by using them “was like playing Russian roulette with three bullets in the chamber”. So already there are beginning to make it a crime to have abortions. (abort73.com)
There are many key factors that went into the process of deciding a case. They didn’t
English 1
Abortion
Guy Thorvaldsen
14, April 14, 2013
Abortion, this is one of the most controversial issues in America. It’s been an issue for over 200 years. In 1973 it was protected under law. But today it isn’t. Most American’s believe that it’s a sin to have an abortion while others see it as a choice to do it. There have been many legal cases against and also for abortion. Many have won but many have lost. This issue will never end. It will always be an argument. By having an abortion the mother is killing and innocent child who has no say in it. The family and father should also have a say in it as well.
A little before the 1800’s states practiced some form of the English Common Law which happened to also lack codification. Abortion and unwed pregnancy didn’t exist in this time period. Finding the history of abortion is more difficult than people can imagine because there aren’t very many records of it to go off of.
Starting in the 1600’s, there was the first conviction of the intent to abort a child. This went down in the state of Maryland, and then four years later another girl was arrested for murder because she had an abortion. This also happened in Maryland, but that case was dropped after the woman married the only witness who of course refused to testify. Another case that happened was in 1710 where Virginia Law made it a capital crime to be pregnant and then be found with a dead baby. In 1719 Delaware made it that anyone who counseled abortion or even infanticide an accessory to murder. According to Olasky’s notes “infanticide was probably the most frequent way of killing unwanted, illegitimate children”. “Abortifacients were known to and used in the early America. But by using them “was like playing Russian roulette with three bullets in the chamber”. So already there are beginning to make it a crime to have abortions. (abort73.com)
There are many key factors that went into the process of deciding a case. They didn’t