In a debate as provocative as the one on abortion, it is easy to find oneself caught between sides. Facts are often skewed in favor of exaggerated claims for both the “Pro-Life” and “Pro-Choice” movements. With a slew of misinformation available online, it is easy to make a decision founded on incorrect beliefs. Whether or not a woman chooses to have an abortion, she should be fully informed as to the benefits and consequences of such a decision.

Nearly all CHS students witnessed the abortion protesters on campus in early December. Armed with huge signs depicting a graphic image of an aborted fetus and the slogan “This is what an abortion looks like,” they edged the line between city property and Claremont High campus on Indian Hill. Yet what they will not disclose is that the image depicted is of a fetus in the third trimester. Fox News reports approximately .01% of all abortions in the US are performed in the third trimester, at which point the fetus is still unconscious. Over 99% of legal abortions in the US are performed in the first or second trimester, before the fetus is aware of pain and while the surgery can still be safe for the mother.

The intent behind Pro-Life’s campaign may be good, but their preventative actions are doing more harm than good. In clinics such as Planned Parenthood that are being shut down, abortions are less than 3% of the services offered to women. American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) estimates that more than 130,000 women have been forced to go without preventive health care since funding for women’s health was reduced in 2011 and half of women trying to have abortions in Texas could not access birth control prior to their abortion due to these measures. By stopping funding, these resources are no longer available to those who need them.

It is no wonder there is a lack of correct information on abortions; state officials involved in these actions are often uneducated on abortion themselves. Texas Representative Jody Laubenberg accused rape victims of getting abortions instead of using “what’s called rape kits, where a woman can get cleaned out,” a wildly inaccurate claim, as rape kits serve to collect a DNA sample of rapists and cannot prevent a pregnancy. Political leaders are creating legislature on abortions without being fully educated on the subject.

The National Cancer Association has found no “Post Abortion Syndrome.” Risks associated with abortion are extremely  low; a study by Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2012 found that a woman is 14 times more likely to die from childbirth than from an abortion.

Abortion is not an extreme method of birth control, as most critics suggest. Half of all women who get abortions say they were on birth control when they became pregnant. The National Abortion Federation found that 66% of women who abort plan to have children later. Abortion is not a choice made in frivolity, it is a choice made without another option. While it is important to be informed of the facts behind abortion, it is also very important to understand and respect the views of those on the other side. Pro-Life advocates may be guilty of pushing incorrect information, but Pro-Choice advocates are often guilty in other ways. The Pro-Choice movement has a tendency to trivialize religions and moral beliefs that prevent people from supporting abortions. These moral foundations behind refusing abortions are just as valid and important when making the decision to abort as being fully informed, and should always be respected.

When one strips away the emotionally charged accusations and complete misinformation, the truth about abortions becomes apparent. Abortions should be the right of a well informed woman to make when she chooses. If Pro-Life or Pro-Choice advocates really want to make a difference, perhaps they should educate themselves first.