A look at the Pro-Life and Pro-Choice agenda with analysis of beginning of life and end of life points of view Jacobi Zakrzewski, Jillian Giesen, Joe McGerr

Dubuque County Right to Life  Non-Profit  Non-Sectarian  Educational Organization  Dedicated to preserving and fostering a respect for human life from conception to natural death.

Methods of Abortion  First Trimester Abortifacients ○ Act to kill a preborn child in the earliest days of life ○ Inhibit ovulation and prevent conception Suction ○ “A powerful pump is hooked to a hose which has serrated suction tip” ○ Baby is “ripped apart and sucked through the narrow hose into a receptacle.” ○ “In 1994, 97% of all abortions came from this procedure”

Methods of Abortion  Second Trimester Saline ○ Needle inserted into mother abdomen and into the babies sac. ○ The baby breathes in, swallowing the salt water solution. The mother delivers a dead or dying baby. Dilation and Evacuation ○ Dilated cervix, “forceps inserted into womb and baby is extracted in pieces” ○ Baby has calcified bones when this happens

Methods of Abortion  Third Trimester Dilation and Extraction ○ Baby extracted in breech fashion until head is just inside cervix ○ “With baby face down, scissors are plunged into baby’s head and spread open to enlarge the wound” ○ “Suction tip inserted and brain removed. Skull collapses and baby delivered.” Lethal Injection ○ Injection of potassium chloride into the heart of baby, cause cardiac arrest. ○ Drugs given to induce labor and baby is delivered dead.

Bias  Previous information was taken from brochures obtained at Dubuque Right to Life  All procedures are described very graphically  Non-maleficence  Little to zero autonomy

Autonomy?

Fear / Scare Tactics Infection is estimated to occur in 5.2% of women Over 200 women have died in developed countries from legal abortions since 1973 But globally, million legal abortions are performed each year (WebMD)

What if…?

Claims

Women’s Reaction to Abortion  “Majority of relationships break up”  “Over 50% experience nightmares, thoughts of suicide”  Many women “turn to drugs or alcohol”  “Gruesome, horrifying procedure”  “Possible complications to abortion, even death”  Dubuque Right to Life gives the notion that an abortion will forever change your life and negative consequences come with it

Planned Parenthood and the abortion pill

Planned Parenthood  Common sense approach to women’s health  Based on respect for each individual’s right to make informed, independent decisions about sex, health, and family planning.  Open for more than 90 years

RU mifepristone  A steroid drug developed in France that blocks the actions of progesterone on the uterus, bringing on menses and inducing abortion even after the implantation of a fertilized egg  Can be used up to 63 days after the first day of a woman’s last period  Has a 97% effectiveness rate, requiring a surgical abortion to be performed for the 3% ineffective attempts to prevent the risk of birth defects in a child

RU mifepristone  Hailed for its effectiveness and safety  Only 1% chance of complications with the pill  Less than a 1 in 100,000 chance of death  Requires the administration of another pill, misoprostol, three days after administration to effectively remove the aborted fetus

Planned Parenthood’s stance  The pill is described as “safe and effective” and is available at many Planned Parenthood health centers  Reasons given for why women choose it: “It can be done early,” “It’s private,” “Many women feel it’s more ‘natural,’” “Women may feel more in control,” and “Nearly all women who have used the abortion pill would recommend the method to a friend”

Ethical dilemmas with the pill  Maintains surgical abortion as necessary back up option in the case of a failed attempt  Could likely make abortions more common  Potential to blur the lines between contraception and abortion in the eyes of the public  Potential to emotionally and physically isolate the woman in the abortion process

Women’s reaction to abortion  “Most women ultimately feel relief”  “Some women feel anger, regret, guilt, or sadness for a little while. Sudden shifts in hormones may make these feelings stronger”  Planned Parenthood seems to establish the feeling of relief as the normal feeling women experience after abortion, treating negative feelings as being associated with conditional factors rather than a normal response

Euthanasia and its differences with Abortion

Euthanasia  At the patient’s request, someone other than the patient initiates the action that hastens death  Justified by the ethical principle of autonomy in which the right to direct one’s healthcare is valued  Sometimes argued with the Principle of Double Effect

Euthanasia- End of Life Treatment Pro Choice- Compassion and Choices Arguments Pro Life- General Arguments  Self-Determination  Death with Dignity  Ends pain and suffering  Prevents a prolonged poor quality of life  Restoration of hope and comfort  Natural law ethics  Devaluing human life  Mental stability of the Terminally ill  Slippery Slope Argument  Pain management and Palliative Care

Abortion and Euthanasia  Bioethical issues  Involve ending life  Controversial Right to make life-terminating decisions is the main debate for both  Ethical Theories Principle of Autonomy

Major Differences AbortionEuthanasia  Terminates a potentially new life  Decision is made by the mother. Not directly by the life to be ended  For the most part legal. Illegal after a certain amount of time  Terminates an already existing life  Decision is made mostly by the patient requesting death  Illegal