The "It's My Body" Argument

When someone is engaged in an activity that our society might deem inappropriate or illegal, many say, "I can do what I want as long as I'm not hurting anyone else." I have never heard the "I'm not hurting anyone else" phrase associated with the "it's my body" argument for abortion. Usually the statement is "It's my body, so I can have an abortion if I want to." Their argument stops there. In our society we don't allow someone to use their body to commit an act that would harm someone else's body. so why should a pregnant woman be allowed to have an abortionist kill an unborn baby that is in her body? After the mother gives birth, she is not allowed to use her body to kill her newborn baby. She can face criminal charges if she uses her body to throw the newborn in a dumpster. Why should she be able to kill her unborn just because it's her body and she can do what she wants?

Another similar argument is that the unborn is part of her, so she can do what she wants. One could ask the woman, "Do you have four arms, four legs, two heads, etc.?" When she says, "No," then she refutes her own argument. Those extra two arms and legs, etc., thus must belong to another human. The unborn is an entity with its own unique genetic makeup. Obviously, it's a separate, distinct human that is not the woman's body. It is in the environment it is supposed to be in for nourishment, growth, and development of its organs and features.

Once again, the "it's my body" argument is just another reason in a long list of reasons that people use to decide to have an abortion. The common theme among nearly all reasons for abortion is the focus on the woman and her situation and the disregard for what the unborn entity actually is. If the unborn is considered "nonhuman" or not a person, then the "it's my body" argument logically works for the woman.