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Student Union
Rachel Marumoto
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Young women should not kill the lives they create
Teenagers are getting abortions so often in the United States nowadays that it's just unbelievable. I have seen so many young women who get pregnant and end up getting abortions. It is heartbreaking to know that they would even think of taking their own child's life just so they can get rid of their "mistake." If you are willing to commit to such sexual behavior, then you should live with the consequences that come your way from doing it. Yeah, I know some people get abortions so they can have a better life, but what about the child they are killing?
Every year, an average of 750,000 young women from 15 to 19 years old get pregnant. The ratio of teenagers getting pregnant between the ages of 15 and 19 is 75 pregnancies for every 1,000 women. Even though the percentage has declined since 1990, that is still a lot of teenagers still in high school or going to college getting pregnant. There were 214,750 abortions among young women between the ages of 15 and 19 just in the year 2002. The most common reasons women cite for having abortions are the concern that having a baby would change their lives, the inability to afford the baby and level of maturity to raise a child. Then if those are the concerns, they should've thought of what would be the consequences of having sexual intercourse, because mistakes do happen and you have to deal with them. And dealing with it doesn't mean you need to get an abortion, because there are other ways of dealing with an unwanted pregnancy.
Though you don't need parental consent to have an abortion in some states, that doesn't mean you just can get away with killing something in you every time you get pregnant. There are options, even if it means putting up the baby for adoption so you can help the child have an opportunity to have a life with someone who can support and take care of it. There will always be the guilt and other emotions from having an abortion, and you will need the support from your family and friends. If you don't tell them about it, you will have to deal with it by yourself, and that is very hard to do.
But teenage girls do get abortions so they can have better lives, because once you have a baby, most of your dreams and goals just tend to slip away because you have to take care of the child you brought into the world.
I hope this helps people see that abortions should not be considered at any time, no matter how old or young you are.
Rachel Marumoto is a junior at Moanalua High School.
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Student Union is a forum for Hawaii's teenagers to tell the community what's on their minds and in their hearts. It appears every Thursday. We welcome opinions of no more than 700 words on any topic. Please include your name, address and phone number. E-mail to letters@starbulletin.com, fax to 529-4750 or mail to Student Union, Editorial Page, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu, HI 96813. For more information, contact Jeff Finney at 529-4735 or jfinney@starbulletin.com
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