Reports that abortions are declining in the United States is welcome news. And while contraceptives, and fewer pregnancies generally, are certainly factors in these numbers, it’s worth acknowledging the profound personal choices — as well as the cultural and policy trends — that are contributing to both the continued decline in abortions and the increase in unplanned pregnancies coming to full-term.
In recent months, both the Guttmacher Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released reports showing a falling percentage (and total number) of abortions in the United States.
Although the year-over-year changes may seem incremental — around a 2% decline — the most recent CDC data indicate that the long-term rate dropped by more than a quarter between 2007 and 2016.
And since 1980? The rate fell by half.
But, sometimes overlooked in the conversation around these numbers is the fact that from the early 1980s to the early 2010s, “the percentage of unintended pregnancies that resulted in an abortion fell from approximately 54 percent to 42 percent.” In short, a greater portion of women with unplanned pregnancies are choosing not to abort.
Additionally, fewer teens are engaging in early sexual behavior, and those who are involved report fewer partners. According to the CDC, in the years following 2007, the percent of students who said they had sexual intercourse dropped by nearly 10%.
There also appears to be more ideological alignment among Americans concerning abortion policy than many may presume. Certainly, some advocates stridently argue, in the words of one recent commentator in New York magazine, that abortion, regardless of the circumstances, “is morally good.” But, a majority of Americans espouse a more nuanced perspective.
Some advocates stridently argue, in the words of one recent commentator in New York magazine, that abortion, regardless of the circumstances, “is morally good.” But, a majority of Americans espouse a more nuanced perspective.
A 2018 Gallup study, for example, found that “less than half of Americans support abortions conducted in the first or the third trimester when the woman doesn’t want the child ‘for any reason.’” But while 45% say they support abortions “for any reason” in the first trimester, in the third trimester support plummets to 20%.
And, according to a separate 2019 poll, more than half of Americans support some level of abortion regulation, with fully two-thirds of respondents saying they favor “requiring women to wait 24 hours between meeting with a health professional to undergo an abortion procedure.”
The numbers, of course, vary even more when pollsters ask specific questions regarding the circumstances surrounding an abortion — for instance, support for abortion rises when a life-threatening illness affects the child or the mother. So, even though Gallup finds that Americans divide evenly into camps of “pro-life” and “pro-choice,” there’s more taking place in individual hearts on this issue than what’s sometimes displayed in public debates dominated by the extremes.
Of course, behind these numbers — whether polls or reports — are unborn children and human beings facing individual challenges and complexities. In a recent piece seeking to humanize the discussion around this issue, The Atlantic’s Caitlin Flanagan writes, “When women are urged to ‘shout your abortion,’ and when abortion becomes the subject of stand-up comedy routines, the attitude toward abortion seems ghoulish.”
Even though Gallup finds that Americans divide evenly into camps of “pro-life” and “pro-choice,” there’s more taking place in individual hearts on this issue than what’s sometimes displayed in public debates dominated by the extremes.
She wonders: “Who could possibly be proud that they see no humanity at all in the (ultrasound) images that science has made so painfully clear?”
On the other hand, she continues, “When anti-abortion advocates speak in the most graphic terms about women ‘sucking babies out of the womb,’ they show themselves without mercy. They are not considering the extremely human, complex, and often heartbreaking reasons behind women’s private decisions.”
Flanagan concludes that “only the truth has the power to move.”
Americans should welcome these recent reports. But the number of annual abortions remains disconcertingly high, and there’s no question that society can and must do more to protect the life of the unborn as well as to aid women in the many painful circumstances that frequently factor into the choice to have an abortion. Until then, allowing truth to guide the public dialogue is an important place to start.