typically justified. When a fetus also is viewed as an individual, however, the rights of two individuals may clash. When a woman is viewed as a free individual with the right to make choices that affect her body, a woman's right to an abortion is typically justified. When a woman is viewed as being subservient to a man on religious grounds or because of cultural norms, however, the right of a woman to an abortion is curtailed to allow either the man who impregnated her or a societal group the right to veto the woman's abortion decision (Gordon 566).
United States law did not recognize any legal rights for an unborn child until relatively recently in the country's history. It was around the turn of the century in 1900 that abortion became generally illegal in the United States. While abortion laws in many states were relaxed or rescinded and the Roe v. Wade decision by the United States Supreme Court affirmed a woman's right to an abortion, many states (18) have enacted "feticide" sta
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