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Who Gets Abortions, and Why?
The abortion debate continues to rage in our country. Various arguments are offered in support of the right of women to have "abortions on demand." Perhaps some of the people who take this position would re-think their endorsement if they studied the statistics that identify who gets abortions and why. Note:
- Less than 1% of all abortions are for victims of rape or incest
- 1% of abortions are for fetal abnormalities
- 4% of women who had abortion did so because a doctor who said their health (emotional or physical) would worsen if an abortion was not performed
- Approximately half of women who have abortions indicate that they do not want to be a single parent and/or they are experiencing problems in their relationship with the father of the child
- Two thirds of those getting abortions state that they could not afford a child
- 75% said that the child would interfere with their lives
- 81% of all abortions performed in the U.S. are on unmarried women
(Statistics from Alan Guttmacher Institute, quoted in Charles R. Swindoll, The Sanctity Of Life, p. 12)
Several things are clear from these statistics. First, the argument that abortions must remain legal because of pregnancies resulting from rape and incest is absolutely bogus! Can anyone seriously maintain this view and justify the killing of millions of babies every year for the sake of a handful of rape or incest victims? (See Wayne Jackson's article in today's bulletin concerning the moral implications of abortion even in cases of rape or incest.) Additionally, the health of the mother is seldom at risk in the modern age of medical technology.
It is apparent that the vast majority of abortions are performed as a "remedy" for the consequences of immoral behavior. Unmarried individuals engage in fornication. A pregnancy results. They don't want to be bothered by an unwanted child. They claim they can not afford the child. Some are honest enough to admit that having the baby would interfere with their own selfish lifestyles.
Abortion is murder. Innocent children are being sacrificed to satisfy the desires of morally bankrupt people. Think!
