The so called "war on women" is an active topic in the lives of many young people and has been coming up a lot in the political world. I have a heightened interest in this topic being that I am apart of a generation that is very independent and likes to make their own decisions. It is this that validates my opinion that all women should have easy access to abortion clinics such as planned parenthood no matter what state they are living in.  Not only is a women's right to choice a conversation that should take place between a women and her doctor, it is also legal in all 50 states to get an abortion. Therefore, no state should be able to restrict funds going to organizations such as planned parenthood, causing them to have to close clinics. This research question effects my values because I value women having the freedom to do as they choose. On the legal side of things, I think it should be illegal for states and the federal government to have the power to reduce funding to planned parenthood clinics being that they help so many people. Certain people do not take into consideration the fact that if babies of mothers who wanted to have an abortion were born what those children would be like. They probably will not be living very good or stable lives, they probably will not be contributing to society in a healthy and productive way. Another thing to consider is what will happen to the lives of the mothers who have babies they do not want. Will they be functioning members of society? These are all things that need to be taken into consideration by state legislators who are trying to lower the rate at which abortions occur in their state. While I have no personal experience regarding this topic, it is comforting to know that if I ever needed to utilize any of these resources, they would be available to me. It is for this reason that I feel I am qualified to argue that states should not be allowed to cut funding to abortion clinics. 

The article "U.S Abortion Statistics" is largely about why, where, and when abortions are occurring. The majority of abortions occur because a woman does not have the time to raise a child, she can not afford to have a child, or she is having trouble with the baby's father and does not want to be a single parent. Surprisingly only 12% of pregnancies are terminated for medical reasons. The other major reason recorded for having an abortion was that the mother had been a victim of rape and mentally could not raise that child.  Most abortions in the United States are performed in clinics, such as planned parenthood. Most places will only perform the abortion during the first 8 weeks of gestation, any time after this the baby is considered far too developed to terminate. The article then proceeds to talk about how the number of abortion providers has been in decline since 2008 due to the fact that states are cutting funding to these clinics. This article puts pro-life and pro-choice claims to the test. It offers many interesting facts that would either reaffirm or change a person's opinion on the subject. In my case it made me feel more strongly about my pro-choice opinions. The source is a website called "Abort 73" which is an anti abortion group. The site is very credible because it gathers statistics from national resources such as the Centers for Disease Control. 

Another article that illustrates an opinion on abortion and planned parenthood is an article published on "Mother Jones". Mother Jones is an online feminist magazine. This article starts out by giving a brief history of the Roe V. Wade supreme court decision that was supposed to make abortion legal and easily accessible in every state. The article then begins to talk about how this is not the case and many women have to drive many miles and even take planes out of the more conservative states to more liberal ones in order to reach a clinic. Abortion clinics are closing down at a rate of 1.5 per week. For example, Texas started out with 41 abortion clinics and after the passing of a harsh bill at the state level, that number is now down to 18. One abortion clinic located near Texas' largest state university was shut down and replaced with a pro-life clinic that feeds worried college students false information about having an abortion being linked to breast cancer. The article points out all the wrong doings of the government in regards to planned parenthood clinics. It puts to test the view points of state legislators and the opinions of more conservative people. This is an argumentative article. It is written by a pro choice feminist which gives the article a unique edge in that it critiques the governments policy. Her bias effects the article by arguing in favor of a women's right to choose. While the entire article does discuss abortion, it talks about different areas of it. It talks about abortion from a political standpoint and from a medical standpoint. It also offers real life accounts of women who faced issues in trying to access a safe abortion.

The article "Planned Parenthood and the Next Generation of Feminist Activists" is mainly about the government restricting a women's right to have access to an abortion. The article explains that most Americans feel that women should be able to have abortions as long as they are legal and safe because ultimately every situation regarding the life of an unborn child is different. In the past 2 years there has been higher rates of attacks on women for their decisions regarding abortions and their own bodies. Many of these attacks have come from state legislators attempting to cut funding to planned parenthood clinics. In certain states there have been laws passed stating that a doctor must perform an ultra sound and make sure the expectant mother sees her unborn child in the womb before completing the abortion. This is because they are trying to get the mother to feel guilty about what she is doing which is really no one's business. The article also goes into detail about how my generation does not take a specific "pro-life" or "pro-choice" stance, but that we more try and look at each particular situation regarding the topic differently. The bias of the article is for women to have the right to choose and that each situation regarding abortion is under different circumstances.  I know this because the author is not only published in a feminist journal but also explicitly states that she supports planned parenthood. She also says that her organization specifically has held pro-choice protests.

My research question is extremely arguable. Abortion and planned parenthood is a debate that has gone on for decades, there are two distinct sides to the issue and the sides constantly argue. An abundance of information exists on the topic and with the help of this information I will be able to back up and prove the point that states should not have the right to cut funding to planned parenthood clinics. By doing this they are violating the basic civil liberties given to all in the constitution. All of the sources I have found can agree on why abortions occur. However the question becomes, should abortions occur and should they be made available to everyone? This is where the disagreement between the two sides begins. One article feels that's abortion is hurting the country and should be shut down immediately. They feel that cutting funding to planned parenthood clinics is the most effective way to do this. The other side of this argument is that it is legal to get abortions in the United States and that everyone should have easy and safe access to a planned parenthood clinic. The viewpoints of the "Abort 73" source reaffirm my opinion on abortions and why they are a necessary part of society. The "Mother Jones" article supports and backs up my claim that state legislators should not get involved in the abortion process because that is something for a woman and her doctor to discuss. I may need to revise my research question to make it broader in order to encompass more aspects of abortion. It may be easier for me to discuss more of abortion as a whole rather than planned parenthood funding as a specific entity. 

