“I want you to remove what the old man put inside me.” These are the chilling words that were spoken by an 11-year old girl in Argentina, according to the New York Times.

      The fact that the child was raped by her grandmother’s boyfriend is a shocking reality. Eleven-year old children are supposed to be worrying about how their hair looks, or when they are finally getting their first phone, not deciding whether or not they are allowed to have an abortion.

      In Argentina, abortion is highly restricted with few exceptions for rape; however, in the northern area where this child lives, authorities waited until it was too late, obligating her to give birth via c-section. At the moment, according to BBC News, “abortion in Argentina is only allowed in cases of rape, or where the mother’s health is in danger.”

      In America, some states have passed similarly harsh abortion laws. According to Aljazeera, “restrictive bans have been passed in Alabama and eight other states.”

      As stated by the New York Times, Alabama’s policy regarding abortion is an example of one of those states, as it declares “an exception for cases when the mother’s life is at risk, but not for cases of rape or incest.”

      This leaves one at a loss for words. It seems that the situation with the 11-year old girl in Argentina, being denied her rights, is occurring here in the United States.

      One report of the Washington Post explains, recently in Virginia, lawmakers passed a law mandating a 24-hour waiting period along with an ultrasound for women seeking an abortion.

      “I feel that the government or other people should not make the decisions for what a woman should do with her body,” exclaimed Maria Ferkova, Spanish Teacher.

      These laws openly violate a woman’s right to have control over her own body. It is not the government’s place nor anyone else’s to make that massive decision for an entire gender. That being said, we could solve the abortion dispute if we can come to an agreement with moderate restrictions upon late term abortion bans.

      “I believe that life has a sanctuary,” stated an anonymous English teacher at Westfield High School.

      But what is life? This is a very controversial question. Is life when the baby has a heartbeat, or when he/she can feel pain? The question has multiple answers depending on the individual, so who is to say?

      Although life, in general, does have value, when an unborn child can feel pain at the 22 week period, a woman should not have an abortion.

      According to the National Center of Biotechnology Information (NCBI), “There is substantial evidence that the process of being killed in an abortion will cause the unborn child pain.” The bill states that a fetus of more than 22 weeks of age, should be given drugs so it will not feel pain.

      Twenty two weeks is when the baby starts to feel pain. That is five months that a woman has to decide if she really wants to have an abortion. Even though it is unclear when a baby really has a life, five months is enough time for a woman to make the decision of whether she wants the baby, or not.

      The laws stating that women are not permitted to have abortions after 6-8 weeks of their pregnancy are unreasonable. It takes two weeks to a month for a woman to find out if she is pregnant. It takes even more time for her to schedule an abortion appointment, and gather the money which is around $350-950, depending on the state. For that reason, one to two months is clearly not enough time to have an abortion.

      Middle ground restrictions on late-term abortion seems like the only solution. No matter how much people try, we can not change a person’s entire viewpoint on such a large belief. Coming to an agreement on late-term abortion bans, after a baby can feel pain is a solid resolution.