Hannah Freeman argues that “helping women around the world have safe, legal abortions…is a necessary step to reducing maternal and child mortality.” According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, a child is defined as any human being under the age of 18 years. And as any doctor and medical textbook can confirm, induced abortion, no matter how safe it may be for the mother, necessarily ends the life of a human being. It would, therefore, be far more logical to conclude that reducing abortion is a necessary step in reducing child mortality.
As for alleviating poverty, advocating for access to contraceptive family planning is one thing. Improving women’s financial situations by killing children is another. We can do better than abortion in finding solutions that truly respect both mothers and their children, both at home and abroad.
Natalie Fohl
U3 Biology & Political Science