Arkansas and North Dakota have both recently passed the strongest recent laws against abortion. These laws will most likely be challenged, raising again the debate over this hot button issue.
While it may seem as though the two state laws are a big deal, we at the Threefold Advocate would like to point out that it does not change as much as one would think.
Arkansas’ law bans abortions after about 12 weeks. The New York Times reported that Arkansas only has one clinic that performs surgical abortions. The other clinics in the state only offers medicinal abortions, which are only possible within the first eight weeks of pregnancy and thus unaffected by the law.
North Dakota has only one abortion clinic, according to a Reuters article. Thus, in both cases the state laws may be more of a posturing move by the states’ legislative bodies than something that will create a substantial amount of practical change.
The Threefold Advocate believes it is important to remember that issues such as abortion are never as simple as we would like them to be. There are a variety of pieces that play into the puzzle of how women should be able to respond to unwanted pregnancies.
Some people seem to believe that abortion provides an easy way out. But in reality abortion is never truly easy since it can impact the woman’s physical and mental health. There is nothing pretty about the process that women who have surgical abortions undergo.
At the same time, it is important for people who disagree with abortion to be willing to take steps towards providing alternatives for the mothers. If conservatives were to have their dream and abortion were to be basically banned, there would be thousands of babies in need of loving families.
It is easy to put forth the “simple” answer that there should be no abortion or that it should be freely accessible in all situations. But the facts of the matter are more complicated than that.
As the debate continues to unfold in the next months and years, we call people to think through the ramifications of their opinions – whichever position they hold.