The Orbis

Some issues are difficult to discuss. I consider myself a fairly liberal and open-minded person, and I normally have an opinion about everything. Yet, when I first began to consider the issue of abortion, I found that I was almost at a loss for words.

I think that abortion is such a sensitive topic because it hits so close to home. Of course, there are other debates that are continually going on, but only a select few of us will ever find ourselves directly "in the line of fire." Abortion, on the other hand, is a matter much more accessible to the majority of the population, especially in relation to teenagers and young women.

In an era when "Sex and the City," Cosmopolitan magazine articles and "Bachelor" hot tub sessions are commonplace in our pop-culture generation, sex and sexuality are everywhere. When it comes to the act of sex itself, however, sexual activity is too often confused with sexual maturity.

Whether they get caught up in the moment, have unfortunate luck with contraceptives, are forced into sex or are just too drunk to reason well, thousands of young women find themselves pregnant each year without any desire to actually have a child. These women are left with two choices: go through with the unwanted birth or undergo an abortion.

Regardless of people's positions on the subject, we all have to recognize the fact that abortion is currently legal in this country. The government and society alike definitely do not accept this happily, but it seems that people are more frightened by government control of women's reproductive rights than of legalized abortion.

However, every state does have some form of law governing underage abortions. The Coalition for Positive Sexuality lists four different categories into which states fall regarding these abortions: no law, parental notification, single parental/guardian consent and consent by both parents/guardians. Tennessee, like most of the South, currently requires that at least one parent agree in order for his or her daughter to receive an abortion.

While I don't think that abortions should be regarded as an "easy way out," it's not fair to allow women over 18 to abort and yet restrict women who are 16 or 17. This violates their freedom of anonymity regarding health care and doesn't make sense when you consider that these same women are able to get prescriptions for birth control without any consent whatsoever.

Proponents of parental consent laws believe that abolishing these laws will encourage girls to have abortions, an idea that has no basis in fact. This argument is similar to the belief that handing out condoms in school will promote sexual activity among teenagers, which is actually the opposite of what results.

I believe that doctors should strongly encourage underage patients to notify their parents of their decision to abort, but it shouldn't be a requirement. Limiting the reproductive rights of a select group of women is unconstitutional, unfair and only makes a difficult decision harder for those whom it affects.

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