Politics of Abortion and Same-Sex Marriage - Essay Example

UK and US in the Politics of Abortion and Same-sex Marriage Abortion and same-sex marriages are s, which have elicited debates all over the globe. Different countries and organizations have advanced their differing views and controversies over the two. Religious communities have strongly expressed their discomfort and reservation on abortion and same-sex relationships. This faction feels that to allow the practice of abortion and same-sex marriage to get its roots in the society is moral erosion in its extreme. However, despite their heavy objectivity, abortion and same-sex relations have found some breeding grounds in the society through legal interventions. States such as Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Iowa, and Connecticut in United States do recognize that homosexuals have their civil rights to marry [1]. Labor Party government gives rights to homosexuals. There are only slight distinctions between marriages and same-sex couples in Britain. Plans are underway to eliminate those differences and fully accept same-sex marriage as legitimate marriages. Both UK and U.S started abortion in 1967 and 1973 respectively. Same-sex marriage recently has hit the headlines in the American politics. Britain has experienced some reactions to change laws on abortion and homosexuality in parliament and Conservative Party. United States and UK have well-defined dissimilarities in their politics of abortion and same-sex marriage. To start with, both United States and United Kingdom have abortion Acts that spells out the procedure of its application and the person to apply it. In Britain, the efforts to amend laws on abortion started back in 1967 when abortion Act was relaxed. These new amendments allowed abortion under proscribed conditions of health of fetus and mother. United States through a ruling by Supreme Court led to a change of law on abortion in January 1973. The new law stated clearly on where, who, and time limits of abortion. For the under-age, consent was required in order to allow abortion. The basic disparity in UK and U.S on laws of abortion is that it allows abortion is on request for the U.S but it is subject to location and moods of physician on the former. The United States Supreme court recognizes the rights of women to abort. They do it through very secretive manner because it values and respects personal privacy. On the contrary, British Abortion law does not provide privacy to women. It has restrictions and one has to give genuine reasons before getting a legal permission to abort. In U.S, there have been numerous incidents to stop abortion in medical health care. This is in a less degree in Britain. Britain has embraced abortion since 1967 and Labour Party has backed the act [1]. It has a rich unity with women groups, which lobbed for flexibility in sexual laws. They have worked indirectly or directly to bring amicable reforms to the laws. These laws have ultimately brought about wider access to birth control methods. The working-class women can now acquire comprehensive education on contraceptives. In U.S, in contrast the laws are liberal. The efforts to promote safe abortions face a lot of resistance. Reports of harassment of health care providers are very high in United States. There are many groups opposing abortion in United States than in United Kingdom [2]. Abortion takes a partisan direction in both the United States and United Kingdom. However, the degree of involvement varies in the two nations. For example, in Britain the Conservative Party opposes any bill, which seeks to promote abortion. They have objected the efforts of the government to reduce age on those seeking abortion. In addition, the Members of Parliament from the Conservative Party unanimously support the Bills in parliament, which are against the act of abortion. Though the Conservative Party has strongly voiced in their well-founded reservations on abortion, the law seems to enjoy a lot of support from the government side. In United States, abortion has generated a lot of interest in the political arenas. For instance, the Democratic Party, which forms the government, has been very lenient on abortion laws [2].The Republican Party condemns the act of abortion. This was evident when President Bush stopped financial support for organization, which performed abortions in the overseas in 2001. The party has maintained this position to date. The law of abortion in Britain came after rigorous debates within political circles. Many consultations among stakeholders brought the law into effective. On contrary, in the United States, the law in question was after a court pronouncement. Many argued that it was the most flexible in the globe. The large population of United States saw it as a shoddy act of the court. They claimed that external forces and pressure groups played a big role in the court ruling in the abortion issue. This has been the basis of the activities of Anti-abortionist. In British government, the law was after a consensus and that is the reason for little opposition from the anti-abortionist [1]. In the United States, majority of population object abortion. Many view the activities of abortion as heinous. Different groups have teamed together to ensure that abortion does not prevail in the United States. In the recent, their efforts have gained major boosts from the media and unparalleled technological advancement. With media, the anti-abortionist has attracted a lot of attention. The anti-abortion groups provoke the masses, with media, to think deeply about the messages they put across. In the United Kingdom, the anti-abortion movement has not used media to bring forward their fears. In the United Kingdom, abortion rests squarely on the National Health Scheme [3]. This scheme has clear policies, which indicates the procedure to finance the abortion cases. However, unresolved ideological, bureaucratic, and budget issues inherent in this system mar it. Private sector plays a big role to provide alternative abortion services when the public sector fails to do so. In the United States National Health Scheme does not exist. This is majorly due to a lot of contention from anti-abortion groups. Supposition that there will be heightened objection from the anti-abortion pressure groups on the health sector to restrict them from performing abortion in their facilities characterizes this area. Turning on the same-sex marriage, the United States and United Kingdom demonstrates clear-cut dissemblance in their sentiments on this issue. These differences are evident from the political arenas and general population. In the United States, same sex-marriage has been a big controversy. The Federal government does not recognize these relationships. However, individual States have passed laws to legitimize same-sex couples. For instance, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and many others [4]. Attempts to make Amendments on the United States’ Constitution have come from the proponents of same-sex relationships. For example, the Act on Marriage Defense has been the main target of the supporters of this relationship in U.S. They demand amendments, which will eventually eliminate the protection of civil rights. In this way, the same-sex marriage will gain acceptance in the United States. In the United Kingdom, homosexual partnerships receive acknowledgement. This became effective in the year 2004. The House of Lords appended signature to affirm homosexuality. This meant that the entire registered homosexuals would enjoy their legal rights and the benefits therein. The same-sex couples got similar treatment as the heterosexual marriages. There are developments to give full recognition to these partnerships and the name will ultimately change to marriage. Homosexual unions have even happened from the churches. This is a big contrast to the case of United States, which only provides limited rights to homosexual matrimony. In the United Kingdom, there has been political will since nineteenth century. The Labour Party has a rich history with gay movement. Interactions with socialists’ feminist such as Stella Browne and Dora Russell fuelled the progression of same-sex marriages witnessed today in the Labour Party (Millet, 2000:7. Gay rights activists, namely, Bob Crossman, Maureen Colquhoun, and Tatchell worked closely with the Labour Party in the 1980s and 1990s [4]. Organizations such as Stonewall were crucial to advance the gays’ rights. Discussions of their grievances were part of Labour Parties activities. The product of such deliberation is the freedom and liberty that homosexuals enjoy in the United Kingdom. In contrast, there are divided arguments and stances from the Democratic Party and Republican Party in the United States. The Democrats are very much flexible on the homosexuality issues unlike their counterparts; the Republicans [5]. The government of United States feels that the some marriage Acts such as the Defense are not constitutional. It argues the law should be refined because it promotes unfair discrimination to the subjects. The Republican and the critics of homosexuals express their discomfort over legalization of same-sex marriage. They perceive it will have untold implication on moral and cultural erosion. This political division jeopardizes the efforts of the gays and lesbians’ movements to find their space in society. Bibliography 1] Leach, R., Coxall, B. & Robin, L. 2011. British politics. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 2] Mckeever, R. & Davies, P. 2006. (2ND Ed). Politics USA .New York: Pearson Longman. 3] Francome, C. 2004. Abortion in US & UK. London: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd 4]Bianco, W & Canon, D. 2010. American Politics Today. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Limited. 5] Millet, K. 2000. Sexual Politics. Chicago: University of Illinois 6] Fisher, J., Denver, D., & Benyon, J. 2003. Central Debates in British Politcs.London: Longman. Read More