Political Issues Essay KP

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Oct 30, 2023

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Student Last Name 1 Student Name Professor Class Date American Political Issues Topic: Abortion is a political issue related to healthcare. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the right to abortion would be protected under the Constitution after evaluating Roe v. Wade. In 2022, the Supreme Court declared that abortion is no longer a constitutional right, engendering states to create their own abortion laws. Motion: Abortion should be federally protected by the Constitution. Pro: The pro-choice movement supports a person’s right to bodily autonomy. Two substantial arguments made by the pro-choice movement are that abortion is a form of healthcare and that the concept of personhood is subjective. Since abortion involves the body, the procedure is a basic form of healthcare, and thus should be readily available to pregnant people. Pregnancy can be a dangerous condition that sometimes leads to the death of the pregnant person. Abortion is healthcare by definition and should be treated as such. Maintaining its status as a federal right can protect people from facing harm or death. In addition to health concerns, many pro-choice people do not view fetuses as people, which researcher Stephen A. McCurdy explains in his study, “Abortion and Public Health: Time For Another Look.” McCurdy elaborates on this idea, stating “The biologic nature of the fetus is in the realm of verifiable scientific fact and admits but one answer: the fetus is a unique human life. [. . .] The question—is the fetus a person ?” (McCurdy). The issue is not objectively right or wrong, which suggests that it is reasonable for

Student Last Name 2 abortion to remain untampered with. Continuing to protect abortion and making it accessible would vastly eliminate issues of healthcare and morality. Con: The pro-life movement views abortion as murder, and therefore deems it to be immoral. Though many people believe that an unborn fetus is not a person, the opposing side sees this differently. In her article “Science Is Giving the Pro-life Movement a Boost,” Emma Green explains that “New technology makes it easier to apprehend the humanity of a growing child and imagine a fetus as a creature with moral status” (Green). As explained by Green, many view fetuses as people, deserving of the same rights as any person who has already been born. Additionally, some view the protection as a violation of states’ rights. The pro-life movement believes states should be able to choose whether abortion is legal, or how far along a woman would have to begin the procedure. They also assert that protecting abortion is essentially protecting justifying murder. And many reject it due to religious reasons, particularly those of the Christian faith. Killing is explicitly condemned in Christianity and is one of the religion’s major sins. However, there is a separation of church and state, meaning that the government should not accommodate this ideology based on religion, especially because the concept is so subjective. Topic: The issue of gun control revolves around restricting gun ownership by using Red Flag laws, stricter background checks, and banning specific gun models. Assault rifles, like the AR-15, have been used in numerous U.S. mass shootings. Motion: There should be harsher restrictions on gun use for current and future gun owners. Pro: In recent years, mass shootings, especially school shootings, have skyrocketed in the country. In the study titled “The Burden of Firearm Violence in the United States: Stricter Laws Result in Safer States,” Faisal Jehan, et al. explain that “ Firearm related deaths

Student Last Name 3 disproportionately involve the younger population resulting in premature deaths” (Jehan, et al.). Many mass shooters have used assault rifles as their gun of choice. And in the tragic and recent mass shootings at the Tops supermarket in Buffalo, New York, and the Uvalde Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, both shooters displayed concerning behavior in the years leading up to the attack and purchased their guns legally. Both men also waited until they were of age to buy them. Stricter gun control laws could prevent senseless murders. And if assault rifles were banned no one could obtain one legally. Upon writing the 2nd Amendment, muskets were the only available firearm, so the inventors of the Constitution could not have predicted that deadlier weapons like assault rifles would be possible. Con: The two common arguments made by those against gun control are that it infringes on their 2nd Amendment rights and that people would find a way to purchase assault rifles illegally. The Gale: Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection , explains that “Banning any type of firearm would be interpreted by some as a violation of the Second Amendment of the US Constitution.” Many people who support this conservative perspective believe this violates their constitutional rights. Though amendments have changed in the past, gun owners see the 2nd Amendment as absolute. Gun ownership is also heavily engrained in American culture and perceived as a symbol of independence and freedom. On the topic of legality, some worry that criminals will obtain guns illegally, and those with good intentions will not have access to them, restricting their ability to defend themselves. However, allowing assault rifles to remain legal would only enable others to buy them, thus having a higher likelihood of violence.

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Student Last Name 4 Topic: Marijuana legalization has been a controversial issue among many Americans. While some believe it should be made legal on the federal level, others believe its legality should be dictated by the states or completely banned. Motion: Marijuana should be legalized on the federal level, and all who have been charged for obtaining or selling it should be freed from punishment. Pro: People who are for marijuana legalization on the federal level believe that the ban on marijuana has unjustly led to the prosecution and imprisonment of many people. In her study, “Public Perceptions of Arguments Supporting and Opposing Recreational Marijuana Legalization,” Emma E. McGinty, et al. explain the benefits of legalizing marijuana. Most pro-legalization perspectives argue that legalization would decrease “criminal justice and economic issues” and would “reduce prison overcrowding, decrease racial disparities in marijuana arrests, increase tax revenue, and create new jobs” (McGinty, et al.). These social and economic developments are significant incentives for legalization beyond recreational usage. Not only does it benefit individuals by freeing them from imprisonment and making more room in prison for violent criminals, but it also directly benefits the country on an economic level. Legalizing marijuana on the federal level also regulates the drug, reducing the risk of tampering with other substances. Con: One of the more common reasons against marijuana legalization is the potential effects on safety. Many believe marijuana is a harmful drug that can lead to serious issues, including addiction and other health problems. The substance is also known to impair the mind and body and leads to people driving under the influence and putting themselves and others at risk. In ProCon.org’s article “Should Recreational Marijuana Be Illegal?” a significant problem of

Student Last Name 5 legalization includes the costs of “increased emergency room visits, medical care, and addiction treatment for the uninsured; [. . .] and a negative impact on health.” (ProCon.org) All these issues combined cause a substantial moral quandary among U.S. citizens who fear the legalization of the drug will lead to reckless decisions and detrimental behavior with harmful consequences. Potential side effects vary on the user, but their effects are greatly diminished in comparison to the side effects of consuming other drugs. Marijuana would be regulated, similar to alcohol, which can cause accidents and death. This side’s argument does not have any logical standing unless they also support prohibition.

Student Last Name 6 Works Cited Green, Emma. “Science Is Giving the Pro-life Movement a Boost.” The Atlantic, 18 January 2018 . "Gun Control." Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2022. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, 2 June 2022. Jehan, Faisal et al. “The burden of firearm violence in the United States: stricter laws result in safer states.” Journal of injury & violence research vol. 10,1 (2018): 11-16. doi:10.5249 McCurdy, Stephen A. “Abortion and public health: Time for another look.” The Linacre quarterly vol. 83,1 (2016): 20-25. doi:10.1080 McGinty, Emma E., et al. “Public perceptions of arguments supporting and opposing recreational marijuana legalization, Preventive Medicine.” vol. 99, 2017, pp. 80-86, ISSN 0091-7435 ProCon.org. “Should Recreational Marijuana Be Illegal?” Britannica , 13 November 2018.

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