s as evidence that the fetus cannot be considered a person. For them, abortion is simply a matter of a womanÆs reproductive rights (Honderich, 1995).
The question of a fetusÆ moral status affects the scientific and medical communities in a significant way, as it often makes scientific advancements that might benefit the population difficult to achieve. Stem-cell research is a prime example. Scientists and doctors are able to use stem-cells to research diseases in a dramatic, new way and develop treatments for them as a result. However, because pro-life supporters believe that these cells represent human life, even outside of a womanÆs uterus, such research raises a firestorm of controversy. Last year, President George W. Bush, who relies on political support from the Republican Party which is largely controlled by pro-life conservatives, passed stringent guidelines on the way in which stem-cell research may be conducted. To a large extent, they restrict the progress that might be achieved through such research, and prevent significant developments in the treatment of disease, particularly genetic disorders.
The uncertainty of a fetusÆ moral status, however, is clouded even further when the fetus is the product of rape. Here, it becomes difficult to determine which issue takes precedence: the moral status of the fetus or the pregnant womanÆs rights as a crime victim. When a woman is brutalized in such a vicious way, it seems also barbaric to insist that she bear the child of her attacker (Saletan, 2003). But what of the fetusÆ rights? How do we determine whose rights should be our primary concern?
The precedent for abortion rights was set on January 22, 1973 when the United States Supreme Court ruled in the case of Roe v. Wade. The case cent
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