Biography of Edmonia Lewis, American Sculptor

Biography of Edmonia Lewis, American Sculptor Edmonia Lewis (c. July 4, 1844–September 17, 1907) was an American sculptor of African-American and Native American heritage. Her work, which features themes of freedom and abolition, became popular after the Civil War and earned her numerous accolades. Lewis depicted African, African-American, and Native American people in her work, and she is particularly recognized for her naturalism within the neoclassical genre. Fast Facts: Edmonia Lewis Known For: Lewis was a sculptor who used neoclassical elements to depict African-American and Native American people.Born:  July 4 or July 14, in either 1843 or 1845, possibly in upstate New YorkDied: September 17, 1907 in London, EnglandOccupation: Artist (sculptor)Education: Oberlin CollegeNotable Works:  Forever Free  (1867),  Hagar  in the Wilderness  (1868),  The Old Arrow Maker and His Daughter  (1872), The Death of  Cleopatra  (1875)Notable Quote: I was practically driven to Rome in order to obtain the opportunities for art culture, and to find a social atmosphere where I was not constantly reminded of my color. The land of liberty had not room for a colored sculptor. Early Life Edmonia Lewis was one of two children born to a mother of Native American and African-American heritage.  Her father, an African Haitian, was a gentlemens servant. Her birthdate and birthplace (possibly New York or Ohio) are in doubt. Lewis may have been born on July 14 or July 4, in either 1843 or 1845. She herself claimed her birthplace was upstate New York.   Lewis spent her early childhood with her mothers people, the Mississauga band of Ojibway (Chippewa Indians). She was known as Wildfire, and her brother was called Sunrise. After they were orphaned when Lewis was about 10 years old, two aunts took them in. They lived near Niagara Falls in northern New York. Education Sunrise, with wealth from the California Gold Rush and from working as a barber in Montana, financed his sisters education that included prep school and Oberlin College. She studied art at Oberlin beginning in 1859. Oberlin was one of very few schools at the time to admit either women or people of color. Lewiss time there, though, was not without its difficulties. In 1862, two white girls at Oberlin accused her of attempting to poison them. Lewis was acquitted of the charges but was subjected to verbal attacks and a beating by anti-abolitionist vigilantes. Even though Lewis was not convicted in the incident, Oberlins administration refused to allow her to enroll the next year to complete her graduation requirements. Early Success in New York After leaving Oberlin, Lewis went to Boston and  New York to study with sculptor Edward Brackett, who was introduced to her by abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. Soon, abolitionists began to publicize her work.  Lewiss first bust was of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, a white Bostonian who led black troops in the Civil War. She sold copies of the bust, and with the proceeds she was eventually able to move to Rome, Italy. Move to Marble and Neoclassical Style In Rome, Lewis joined a large artistic community that included other women sculptors such as Harriet Hosmer, Anne Whitney, and Emma Stebbins. She began to work in marble and adopted the neoclassical style, which included elements of ancient Greek and Roman art. Concerned with racist assumptions that she wasnt really responsible for her work, Lewis worked alone and was not part of the community that drew buyers to Rome. Among her patrons in America was abolitionist and feminist Lydia Maria Child. Lewis converted to Roman Catholicism during her time in Italy. Lewis told a friend that she lived within the city of Rome to support her art: There is nothing so beautiful as the free forest. To catch a fish when you are hungry, cut the boughs of a tree, make a fire to roast it, and eat it in the open air, is the greatest of all luxuries. I would not stay a week pent up in cities, if it were not for my passion for art. Edmonia Lewis most famous sculpture: The Death of Cleopatra (1876). Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain Famous Sculptures Lewis had some success, especially among American tourists, for her depictions of African, African-American, and Native American people. Egyptian themes were, at the time, considered representations of Black Africa. Her work has been criticized for the Caucasian look of many of her female figures, though their costuming is considered more ethnically accurate. Among her best-known sculptures are Forever Free (1867), a sculpture commemorating the ratification of the 13th Amendment and which depicts a black man and woman celebrating the Emancipation Proclamation; Hagar in the Wildnerness, a sculpture of the Egyptian handmaiden of Sarah and Abraham, mother of Ishmael; The Old Arrow-Maker and His Daughter, a scene of Native Americans; and The Death of Cleopatra, a depiction of the Egyptian queen. Lewis created the The Death of Cleopatra for the 1876 Philadelphia Centenniel, and it was also displayed at the 1878 Chicago Exposition. The sculpture was lost for a century. It turned out to have been displayed on the grave of a race track owners favorite horse, Cleopatra, while the track was transformed first into a golf course and then a munitions plant. With another building project, the statue was moved and then rediscovered, and in 1987 it was restored. It is now part of the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Death Lewis disappeared from public view in the late 1880s. Her last known sculpture was completed in 1883, and Frederick Douglass met with her in Rome in 1887. A Catholic magazine reported on her in 1909 and there was a report of her in Rome in 1911. For a long time, no definitive death date was known for Edmonia Lewis. In 2011, cultural historian Marilyn Richardson uncovered evidence from British records that she was living in the Hammersmith area of London and died in the Hammersmith Borough Infirmary on September 17, 1907, despite those reports of her in 1909 and 1911. Legacy Though she received some attention in her lifetime, Lewis and her innovations were not widely recognized until after her death. Her work has been featured in several posthumous exhibitions; some of her most famous pieces now reside in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Sources Atkins, Jeannine.  Stone Mirrors: The Sculpture and Silence of Edmonia Lewis.  Simon Schuster, 2017.Buick, Kirsten.  Child of the Fire: Mary Edmonia Lewis and the Problem of Art History’s Black and Indian Subject.  Duke University Press, 2009.Henderson, Albert.  The Indomitable Spirit of Edmonia Lewis: A Narrative Biography.  Esquiline Hill Press, 2013.

Definition and Examples of Dialect Prejudice

Definition and Examples of Dialect Prejudice Dialect prejudice is discrimination based on a persons dialect or way of speaking.  Dialect prejudice is a type of linguicism. Also called dialect discrimination. In the article Applied Social Dialectology, Adger and Christian observe that dialect prejudice is  endemic in public life, widely tolerated, and institutionalized in social enterprises that affect almost everyone, such as education and the media. There is limited knowledge about and little regard for linguistic study showing that all varieties of a language display systematicity and that the  elevated  social position of standard varieties has no scientific linguistic basis (Sociolinguistics: An International Handbook of the Science of  Language and Society, 2006). Examples and Observations Some native-English speakers have had rich and/or school-like language experiences at home, and others have not. They bring dialect diversity to our classrooms. Dialects that vary from Standard English, such as Appalachian or  African-American Vernacular English (AAVE), are often stigmatized as improper or inferior English. However, professional linguists do not consider these varieties inferior because they conform to consistent rules, and speakers are fully able to express ideas using the dialect. Nevertheless, conscious or unconscious dialect prejudice is widespread, even among individuals who speak the variation.(Deborah G. Litt et al.,  Literacy Teacher Education: Principles and Effective Practices. Guilford, 2014)Responding to Dialect PrejudiceLanguage prejudices seem more resistant to change  than other kinds of prejudice. Members of the majority culture, the most powerful group, who would be quite willing to accept and champion equality in other social and educational d omains, may continue to reject the legitimacy of a dialect other than their own. . . . The high level of dialect prejudice found toward vernacular dialects by both mainstream and vernacular speakers is a fact that must be confronted honestly and openly by those involved in education about language and dialects.The key to attitudinal changes lies in developing a genuine respect for the integrity of the diverse varieties of English. Knowledge about dialects can reduce misconceptions about language in general and the accompanying negative attitudes about some dialects.(Carolyn Temple Adger, Walt Wolfram, and Donna Christian,  Dialects in Schools and Communities, 2nd ed. Routledge, 2007) Dialect Prejudice in British Schools- Language use is one of the last places where prejudice remains socially acceptable. It can even have official approval, as we see in attempts to suppress slang and dialects at school. . . .Banning words is not a sound educational strategy. As Michael Rosen points out, schools have been trying this for more than 100 years to no avail. Research shows that gradual transition towards standard English works better. But because dialect prejudice is so prevalent, this must be done in such a way that children understand there’s nothing inherently wrong with their natural expression. . . .There’s nowt wrong with regional dialects, nothing broke ass about slang. They’re part of our identities, connecting us to time, place, community, and self-image. They needn’t be displaced by formal Englishwe can have both.(Stan Carey, There’s Nowt Wrong With Dialects, Nothing Broke Ass About Slang. The Guardian [UK], May 3, 2016)- Soci olinguists have been fighting dialect prejudice since the 1960s, but negative and uninformed views about non-standard English are regaining currency in media and  educational  debates. Most recently, Carol Walker, headteacher of a Teesside primary school, wrote a letter to parents asking that they help tackle the problem posed by their childrens use of local dialect by correcting certain words, phrases and pronunciations associated with Teesside (including gizit ere and yous).Naturally, I support the schools aim of  teaching  pupils to use written standard English so that they can progress in future education and employment. However, focusing on speech will not improve their writing. . . .Ultimately, it is not the presence or absence of non-standard forms in  childrens  speech that raise educational issues; rather, picking on non-standard voices risks marginalising some children, and may make them less confident at school. Silencing pupils voices, even with the best inte ntions, is just not acceptable.(Julia Snell, Saying No to Gizit Is Plain Prejudice. The Independent, February 9, 2013) Variationist Sociolinguistics[William] Labov and [Peter] Trugdill were seminal figures in the emergence of a sub-field of sociolinguistics that has come to be known as variationist sociolinguistics. Variationist sociolinguists focus on variation in dialects and examine how this variation is structured. They have shown that linguistic difference has regularity and can be explained. Scholars in this field have been central figures in the fight against dialect prejudice. Speaking from a position of scholarly and scientific detachment (Labov 1982: 166), variationist sociolinguists have been able to show that the grammar of non-standard dialects is not wrong, lazy or inferior; it is simply different to standard English and should therefore be respected. Some of these researchers have worked directly with teachers and teacher trainers and have designed curriculum materials on language variation for use in the classroom.(Julia Snell, Linguistic Ethnographic Perspectives on Working-Class Chi ldrens Speech. Linguistic Ethnography: Interdisciplinary Explorations, ed. by Fiona Copland, Sara Shaw, and Julia Snell. Palgrave Macmillan, 2015) The Beginnings of Dialect PrejudiceIt is in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries that we witness the  beginnings of dialect prejudice; an early instance can be traced in the writings of a chronicler named John Trevisa, who complained  that the Northumbrian dialect was so scharp, slitting [biting] and frottynge [grating] and unshape [unshapely] that southerners like himself were unable to understand it. In the early seventeenth century, Alexander Gill, writing in Latin,  labelled Occidentalium (or Western dialect) the greatest barbarity and claimed that the English spoken by a Somerset farmer could easily be mistaken for a foreign language.Despite such remarks, the social stigmatization of dialect was not fully articulated before the eighteenth century, when a provincial  accent  became a badge of social and intellectual inferiority. In his Tour Thro the Whole Island of Great Britain (1724-27), Daniel Defoe reported his encounter with the boorish country speech of Devonknow n to the locals as jouringwhich was barely comprehensible to outsiders.(Simon Horobin,  How English Became English. Oxford University Press, 2016)

Fifth Hour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Fifth Hour - Essay Example kers through some of the huge strides that people have made throughout the world in an attempt to ensure equity for all irrespective of racial origin. In like manner, I admired how contributors across diverse races aired their opinion with boldness and charisma. The event was beneficial to me in several ways as I learned that for a state or a nation to succeed, its occupants must tolerate the diverse cultures that exist within it. For that is what brings the difference between successful and failed states (Munin 188). Moreover, I learnt that racial understanding is of great significance in the current job market as various organizations always open their doors in different nations in an attempt to explore international markets. Over and above, the event made me learn that cohesive existence with our brothers and sisters of unlike originality is beneficial in our development through life, as they play a role in bringing the best out of

Narration & Description, and the Writing Process Essay

Narration & Description, and the Writing Process - Essay Example Historically, Seattle had been inhabited by Native Americans more than 4000 years before the arrival of the first batch of white settlers. In fact, the city gets its name from the Native Duwamish and Suquamish tribes, which named their area settlement after their chief named Seattle (Sanders, 2010). When the first European named George Vancouver settled around Seattle in May 1792 and during his 1791–95 expeditions that charted the Pacific Northwest, the local tribes of Duwamish and Suquamish inhabited at least seventeen villages in the areas around Elliott Bay. This paper describes Seattle and its unique and memorable people and features, which make it such a special place including its nice and friendly people and the nice weather and climate. Why Seattle is Unique and Memorable The city’s geographical features are some of its attractions, mostly its hilly topography, which includes the West Seattle, Beacon Hill, First Hill, Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, Magnolia, and Denn y Hill. In addition to these hills, the other geographic features that adorn the landscape of Seattle are the Olympic and the Kitsap peninsulas, the Olympic Mountains, the Cascade Range, and lake Sammamish, which lies to the eastern parts o flake lake Washington. Others of these geographical features are the luxuriant green forests and the abundant water bodies, which are sources of livelihood and recreation for local and visiting communities (Sanders, 2010). The city’s topography also makes it such as beautiful place to live and visit. With the Elliot Bay bounding it to the lower left, the East Broadway Avenue running from upper left to lower right, and South Dearborn Street bordering the lower right, the city’s topography is a sight to be hold. Its sea line, rivers, forests, lakes, and the surrounding fields also make the city a sight to behold. The topography of the city is also quite ideal for activities such as bicycling, camping, sailing, skiing, and hiking throu ghout the year (Pierce, 2003). Tourism is the other attractive aspect of Seattle, which has quite a number of museums and galleries, annual fairs, and festivals, the most prominent of which are sea-fair events in July and August, memorial day weekend, the Seattle hempfest, independence day celebrations, the 24-day Seattle international film festival, the art and music festival bumbershoot, art and entertainment over the labor day weekend. The economic prowess and stability of the city is also one of its attractions since it is a mixture of old and new economies. Examples of the old economies of the city are its industrial companies while the new economy refers to internet and other technology services and goods companies (Pierce, 2003). Central to the city’s economic stability are its port, the Tacoma International Airport, trade with Asia, start-up and established businesses, green building and clean technologies The climate of the city also endears it to it inhabitants and tourists. The aspects of the city’s climate worth mentioning are its mild wet winters, warm dry summers, and oceanic or temperate marine. The city thus falls within the cool/mild wet winter, and dry-summer subtropical zone, characteristic of Mediterranean climate. In addition to the above geographical and climate features, the city’s neighborhoods and communities also make it such a special and memorable place for its inhabitants and visitors (Sanders, 2010). These neighborhoods and towns have numerous venues such

Zlatas Diary Essay Example for Free

Zlatas Diary Essay Imagine yourself as a child again, your living life in a tiny, freezing cold house with no gas, electricity or water and insufficient food. You cant go anywhere outside because it isnt safe. There is no school for you to attend because there are too many risks and no one is willing to teach. You dont ever see your friends, and the thought of them in danger is always on your mind. You have played with all your toys and read all your books. You don’t make any loud noises because your house faces the snipers. Youre growing out of all your clothes and your shoes no longer fit. Your always scared, and frightened to death because people around keep getting killed. And you dont know how long this is going to go on for, or if it’s ever going to end, and when it’s your turn to be shot at†¦ That’s what Zlata had to live with. Zlatas Diary is a diary text written by a young girl named Zlata Filipovic. The Diary begins in September of 1991 as a typical fifth-grader excited and enthusiastic about starting school, she records the beginning of starting school in Sarajevo. Within six weeks of the diary, her hometown was involved in terrible war, and she was soon facing deprivation and the death of close friends and classmates. Zlata and her father were forced to haul buckets of water to their apartment building. Bombs were falling continuously around the house, and sometimes smashing through windows, sometimes forcing the family to move into their damp, dark cellar. Sometimes Zlata would be left by herself while both of her parents tried to work. Constantly worried about the safety of her relatives and her own well being, she feared that the war would never end and she poured her deepest feelings into her beloved childhood diary, which she named Mimmy. During the war, Zlata and her family lose almost everything. Zlatas mothers place of work is soon totally destroyed. Zlata cant go to school with any regularity at all. She almost forgets what fruit and vegetables taste like! Some of Zlatas friends are murdered horribly, innocent children caught in the crossfire of someone elses war. Sarajevo soon transforms from an educated center of culture and friends, to a destroyed blood-pit in which survival for people becomes very difficult. Zlata even contemplates suicide but tries to be strong, especially for her mother, who is finding it extremely hard to deal with the war and the loss of her close friends and relatives, and also her job. Zlata admits she is a child without a childhood who only wants peace for Christmas in 1993. This line in the book especially was upsetting, as no child should ever be stripped of their childhood and innocence. Despite the horrible cycle of devastation and death, the neighborhood becomes a bit of a family, all sticking together. There are good people who look out for the children and make sure that Zlata and the other children around still gets an occasional chocolate bar, some clothes to fit their growing bodies and small birthday presents. The new family tries to still celebrate the holidays and birthdays and marriages that still occur. Zlata’s diary is soon published, it’s published during the war itself, and it was the only thing to save Zlata and her family. It was their ticket out of Sarajevo. Luckily, Zlata has a happy ending, happier than some of her friends and relatives. And of course, Zlata has never forgotten the war. She still continues to speak about the war. Zlatas Diary is a personal and sad record of a childhood lost to war. It was a truly inspirational and emotional book with an author who I feel deeply for. I would read this book again. It helps me to realize how lucky I have things and how precious life is.

criminal justice Essay examples -- essays research papers

Denzel Washington plays veteran L.A.P.D. Det. Sgt. Alonzo Harris. For thirteen years this highly decorated cop has been on the front lines in the war against narcotics. He's pledged to protect and serve the citizens of Los Angeles, but his optimism about police work has long since been chipped away by the reality of life on the streets. He and the tight-knit group of officers that report to him have crossed the line between legality and corruption. They find themselves breaking the laws they're supposed to enforce. Alonzo's ethics and his logic are in complete opposition to the "book" which most cops must follow. "It takes a thief to catch a thief," Hoyt is a young naive cop that is given twenty-four hours to train with Harris. Before the day is done, the young cop is asked to take drugs, accept drug money as a payoff, invent evidence, and even commit murder. Before he knows it, he's in so deep that there seems to be no way out. As Alonzo tells him "There is no justice, no law. It all boils down to what you can and cannot prove." Alonzo’s abusiveness and carelessness become a problem and the Police Chief orders him to see a Psychologist concerning his behavior. During the first visit, the police department provided a copy of his personal information file, which reveals the typical schemata of a person with an antisocial personality disorder. He lacked a superego; he has little remorse for his abusive, impulse-driven and dangerous behavior. He also saw himself as almost being superior and smarter than everyone else; by planning the training day with Hoyt, he believed this made him superior. He hid behind his Los Angeles Police Department badge and broke the laws that he was supposed to enforce. Individuals with Anti-Social disorder think that when they are caught committing the crime—their problem is getting caught not committing the crime. The goal for the future is to become a better criminal, rather than obeying the law. Throughout the movie his thought processes would include some of the following: 1. Rules are meant for others 2. Only fools follow all the rules 3. Rules are meant to be broken 4. Look out for #1 5. My pleasure comes first 6. If others are hurt, offended, or... ...nt/helper relationship this is known as transference. This allows the client to re-experience a variety of feelings that would otherwise be inaccessible. During my sessions with Alonzo his behavior toward me is very shifty, careful, guarded, apprehensive, and distrustful. This causes me to become uneasy, withdrawn from the client and blaming the client for the tension between us. Counter transference is the reaction or a reflection of a past or present relationship of the therapist toward the client that could interfere with objectivity. Because Alonzo is so aggressive and forward with his angry behavior, I find myself fearing him and avoiding conflict. Since I am a new therapist, I will need ongoing supervision to monitor my reactions to the sessions. The Psychoanalytic approach is very simplistic and client-oriented, which is very important to Alonzo’s breakdown. I did not want to be too aggressive; I want him to establish his own goals and path to different lifestyle. When Alonzo is able to accept that he could get even more from holding the LAPD badge by becoming a part of the system, rather than trying to always fool the system, he (hopefully) begin to act more adaptively.

Abortion: Legal or Illegal Essay

While abortions are viewed as immoral and should be deemed illegal, women should have the right to choose what happens to their own body because abortions can be chosen as a way of getting rid of an undesired pregnancy for a rape or incest victim, abortions can be spontaneous or not planned at times, abortions have been around for centuries and abortions can also be medically induced due to medical issues with the mother or unborn child. First, women should have the right to choose what happens to their own body because abortion can be a way for a rape or incest victim to get rid of an undesired pregnancy that resulted from the attack. According to Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network or RAINN (2009), in 2004 and 2005 there were a total of 64,080 women that were raped. According to medical reports, the incidence of pregnancy for one-time unprotected sexual intercourse is 5%. By applying the pregnancy rate to the total number of women who were sexually assaulted or raped that would m ean there were 3,204 pregnancies as a result of rape during that period. See more:  Perseverance essay Not all of these women are going to want to carry the pregnancy full term. Victims of rape and incest can suffer from low self-esteem, depression, guilt, feelings of being unclean or dirty and even a dislike for sex and the opposite gender. This is an alarming statistic. It can also be broke down into smaller figures. One out of every six women has been the victim of rape before in her lifetime (RAINN, 2009). If these women want to have an abortion they should have the right to be able to get it and not have to worry about what everyone else believe. Additionally, abortions can be spontaneous at times and as a result completely unplanned. Spontaneous abortion is better known by people as miscarriages. There are some who think that there are several different causes for this. These different causes range from chromosome problems, physical abnormalities and immune disorders. In cases of spontaneous abortions there is usually no warning it is going to happen, as a result the woman does not have a say in the matter. However, the outside world still looks at a these women differently when it occurs. Some look with pity and others look with disgust in their eyes for these women. Some women who seek an abortion and can not get one for some reason have at times tried doing things that would cause a spontaneous abortion. There are times when a spontaneous abortion happens and not all the tissue from the fetus is passed in which case there are then two choices for the woman. The first choice is surgery. The second option is to take medication to be able to complete the abortion. If the spontaneous abortion is left untreated it can cause harm to the woman that is carrying the unborn fetus. However, if a woman has had three or more consecutive spontaneous abortions then the medical field will label her a habitual aborter (Abortion, 2009). Third, abortions have been around in history for centuries for women. Back when the settlers first arrived in the United States abortion was legal. Once then Constitution was adopted abortions before quickening were legal and very widely advertised (NAF, 2010). The Japanese have records that date back to the 12th century of inducing an abortion on women who choose to have one. Back in the 11th century authors would put such knowledge into poetry. However, the herbs were not always without side effects. Some of the herbs used during that time frame have been found to be poisonous. In 1898, it was recommended to use a mixture of yeast and pennyroyal tea to naturally cause a spontaneous abortion and bring menses back (Abortion, 1984, 1992, 1998). By 1880, most abortions had become illegal in the United States, except for those that are necessary to save the life of the woman. But due to the knowledge and acceptance of women’s right to an early abortion was rooted deeply in the U.S. society by that time; abortionists continued to practice openly with the support of the public, and since it was illegal by that time the abortio nist would be taken to court and the juries would refused to convict them of any wrong doing. Women who do not want to be pregnant have though out history seeked abortions or have taken the matter into their own hands. This changed in the 20th century with the Supreme Court ruling in Roe v Wade. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of permitting abortion during the first six months of a woman’s pregnancy. The base for the Supreme Court ruling is that the unborn fetus is not protected under the 14th amendment like the pregnant woman is because the fetus is not a person. The most important reason that women should have the right to choose what happens to their bodies is because abortions can be medically induced due to health issues with the mother or the unborn child. There are times when it is dangerous for the woman to carry the pregnancy at all. It is during times like these that women need the right to be able to choose what is best for them. If abortions were illegal these women would be subjected to the choice of carrying the pregnancy with all the medical problems that will come along with it or seeking an illegal abortion. Illegal abortions can be very risky and can cause death from blood loss or even partial births were the woman ends up giving birth to a dead fetus later in the pregnancy. However, women should have the right to choose what is best for them and the unborn fetus. If the fetus would develop damaged in some way that it would not be able to sustain life outside of the womb then women should have the right to seek out an abortion if they want it. However, on the contrary the religious beliefs of some see abortion as immoral and would like to see it become illegal. These people view abortion as murdering a helpless little person who can not defend themselves. They believe that life starts at the moment of conception. The Roman Catholic Church stated that â€Å"the deliberate ending of a pregnancy† is never acceptable, even if it is to save the life of the woman (Abortion and Religion, 2011). Gwendolyn Brooks, famous poet, wrote in her poem â€Å"A Street in Bronzeville† back in 1945 that â€Å"Abortions will not let you forget, you remember the children you got that you did not get.†(Abortion, 2003) These are sound arguments against abortion. However, women have the right to say what happens to their own bodies. The unborn fetus is within a woman’s body. Therefore, the woman has the right to say if it should stay or go. To make women do something against their will, like being pregnant, is to take away their freedom to act in a way that is best for them. According to the Supreme Court, the unborn fetus is not a person. Therefore, since the unborn fetus is not a person it can not be considered murder. It is not murder until life begins and the fetus can survive outside the woman. Indeed, while abortions are viewed as immoral and should be illegal, women should have the right to choose what happens to their body. References Abortion. (1984, 1992, 1998). Our Bodies, Ourselves for the New Century. Retrieved from http://www.feminist.com/resources/ourbodies/abortion.html Abortion. (2003). In Propaganda and Mass Persuasion: A Historical Encyclopedia, 1500 to the Present. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/abcprop/abortion Abortion. (2004). In Encyclopedia of Women’s Health. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/sprwh/abortion Abortion. (2008). In The Columbia Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/columency/abortion Abortion. (2009). In Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/tcmd/abortion Abortion and Religion. (2011, June). Retrieved from http://www.efc.org.uk/PDFs/Abortion%20and%20 religion%20leaflet%202011.pdf BBC. (2012, May 22). Abortion: Historical attitudes to abortion Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/legal/history_1.shtml NAF. (2010). National Abortion Federation. Retrieved from http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/history_abortion.html RAINN. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.rainn.org/get-information/statistics/sexual-assault-victims Trupin, S. R. (2007, June 20) Abo rtion – Types Preparation and Procedure Information. Retrieved from http://www.emedicinehealth.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=59088&pf=3&page=1