By Jennifer Bruhn|Lindenlink Staff

Decisions have to be made…

The presidential election is coming closer every day. Speakers at the national conventions try to persuade the nation to vote for a specific party and, thereby, a president. While watching the Democratic National Convention, it is easy to see the degree of opposition among Americans.

A large disparity exists when it comes to abortion. Many Democrats support abortion no matter what reasons a woman has. In their eyes, it is a decision which only the woman can make. Republicans, on the other hand, are against abortion. Some of them, however, condone it when dealing with rape or incest.

Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, supported Obama in her speech at the convention. Her opinion is that Obama helped women by supporting them during his presidency. She said that he “ensured women’s preventive care,” including birth control, which she believes should be covered by all health care plans. She encourages women to vote for Obama so that they will continue to be supported in the future.

Richards criticizes the words of Paul Ryan, Republican party nominee, and Mitt Romney, Republican presidential nominee, that women needed their help. Their opinion is that birth control should not be covered by health insurance. This is, according to Richard, not helpful for women. She said that they “even tried to redefine rape.” For this reason, women should not support them when the election comes up in November.

Nancy Keenan, working for the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws Pro-Choice America, also spoke out to women not to vote for the Republican Party. She even said that “Women in America cannot trust Mitt Romney.” The reason for that is that “he will not support women´s health,” she said. Furthermore, Keenan said Romney’s plan is to end the Affordable Care Act, which has helped many women recently. Her speech expressed her viewpoint that women should think for themselves without any politicians to interfere.

One reason that Republicans oppose Democrats is the case that abortions may be allowed for women who cannot pay for the procedure. They fear that costs will need to be paid by taxpayers, which is a concern for many people.

In general, DNC speeches about abortion suggest that women should have more rights but that this will not happen if they vote for the Republican Party. My opinion is that abortion is a controversial topic and that everyone should have the right to have their own viewpoint. In November, we will see the outcome. In what way did politicians influence women´s viewpoints? Did they believe other issues were more important to be considered? It currently remains unknown.