March 23, 2017

pp-
Chicago Academy High School
3400 N Austin Ave
Chicago, IL, 60634

Dear fellow peers of Chicago Academy High School,

How can a person live with the constant reminder that they have killed someone? Maybe
someone who found the cure for a disease? Or created a genius invention? My name is Stella
Erimia and I am currently a sophomore at Chicago Academy High School. The purpose of this
letter is to help my peers have a deeper understanding and appreciation for life. Abortion rates
keep increasing as the years go by. Abortion is the deliberate termination of a woman’s
pregnancy. I am against abortion, but under some circumstances a woman should be able to have
the choice. The circumstances under which abortion is acceptable are rape and if the pregnancy
can result in the death of the mother.

Did you know that abortion is against the law? Abortion is illegal in many states. In Illinois
specifically abortion is against the law, once fetus becomes visible. The author states, “If the
person engaging in the conduct thereby intentionally kills or attempts to kill the unborn child,
that person shall, instead of being punished under paragraph (1), be punished as provided under
sections 880, 918, and 919(a) of this title (articles 80, 118, and 119(a)) for intentionally killing or
attempting to kill a human being.” (Unborn Victims of Violence Act 2). The author is effectively
demonstrating that abortion is against the law. This statement backs up my claim on how
abortion is a crime. The killing or attempt of killing of an unborn baby is murder. This is
significant because it is one of the laws many continue to break. Yet many seem to argue that it
is not the killing of a baby because the baby is not fully developed. It is clearly stated that
abortion is illegal after a certain time and people continue to have procedures done. This can
change many views to show that abortion is against the law. Abortion is murder.

Higher death rates are mainly associated with women who have had an abortion. Founder of
Elliot Institute David C Reardon wrote an article titled “Deaths Associated with Pregnancy
Outcome: A Record Linkage Study of Low Income Women” that said “More than 173,000
American women found that women who aborted were 154% more likely to commit suicide than
women who carried to term” (Reardon 2012). This quote clearly shows that death rates were
more common among women who have aborted a baby. Professor Mika Gissler reported that
“The mean annual suicide rate amongst women who had an abortion was 34.7 per 100,000,
compared with a mean rate of 11.3 per 100,000 in the general population of women.” These
statistics show that suicide rates were higher among women who have had abortions. Death was
more common with that group of women.
Abortion is a sin in many religions. In Exodus 20:13 it is said, “Thou shalt not kill.” According
to the Old Testaments sixth commandment, killing is a sin. In the Qur’an 17:32 its states, “Kill
not your offspring for fear of poverty; it is We who provide for them and for you. Surely, killing
them is a great sin.” The Qur’an clearly states that killing of an offspring in fear of what may
happen is a sin. Abortion is also seen as a sin in the Buddhist religion because “traditional
Buddhism rejects abortion because it involves the deliberate destroying of a life”. This shows
that Buddhism is against abortion because it destroys a life. This can convince many people who
are religious to change their views.

However, many have different views. Some argue that with abortion it can save a lot of money
and put put that money into things more beneficial. In the article “Everything You Need to Know
about the 20-Week Abortion Ban Advancing in the House” its main point was to summarize
anti-abortion bill that would ban all abortions nationwide after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and found
that the resulting additional births would increase the federal deficit by $225 million over nine
years, due to the increased need for Medicaid coverage (Ressler 2013). While this may be true, a
human’s life is worth more than any amount of money.

Many pro-abortionists also seem argue that a baby should not be brought into the world
unwanted. Approximately half of the pregnancies among american women are unintended.
Couples shouldn’t have to bring in a baby into the world if they don’t want him or her. This
gives a baby a negative start to life.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I appreciate you taking time to read this letter.
Although there are many sides to this topic I am against it but under some circumstances a
woman should be able to chose. In life not everyone will agree with you but I want the audience
to begin to see pregnancy and abortion in a different perspective.

Stella Erimia
serimia@cps.edu