Peer Review Forum: Definition
2
The Unethical Act of Organ Buying and Selling
Breanna Keenan
College of Business, Grand Canyon University
ENG-106-0501: English Composition II
Rick Gaspar
April 21, 2021
The Unethical Act of Organ Buying and Selling
Within the United States, the thought of organ buying and selling is present in many American minds. To be unethical means to maintain a low moral standard, which is what the buying and selling of organs pertains. The unethical and criminal act of organ buying and selling, also known as organ trafficking, leaves a clear winner and loser in every situation. The rich will always win, and the poor will always lose due to what each group is gaining and losing. The buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it leads to corruption, exploitation, and unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor.
The buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it leads to corruption between individuals who are rich and poor. Corruption can be described as the fraudulent or dishonest doings by those who are in power. The act of participating in organ trafficking allows a practice to go forward that will do violence to or deteriorate the views of how goods are properly valued (Glenn Cohenn, 2014). When organ trafficking is present in an individual’s mindset or morality, the idea of goods being properly valued diminishes, leaving fraudulent and dishonest actions by those who hold power. When it comes to the rich and poor, the rich use fraudulent values to put a price on organs housed by the poor. This creates a corrupt environment for all individuals who are involved due to the fact that life is priceless and does not hold a valued dollar amount. To continue, the act of organ trafficking seems to have led the countries that find this criminal act to be legal into high levels of corruption, therefore leading to ineffective regulatory infrastructures (Kerstein, 2016). Ineffective regulatory infrastructures can be referred to as the lack of legal and governmental framework. With the lack thereof, corruption becomes more generalized between individuals. Corruption between individuals who are rich and poor is a direct result of the unethical act of buying and selling organs within the United States.
The buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it leads to exploitation between individuals who are rich and poor. Exploitation can be described as the act of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their actions, or in other words, to take advantage of someone or something. When it comes to topics like organ buying and selling, a global shortage of organs has driven the industry, relying on poor populations to be donors and wealthy populations to be recipients (Archer, 2013). This is a form of exploitation to individuals who are considered to be in the poor populations due to the fact that those who reside in the wealthier populations are taking advantage of those who reside conversely. To continue, those who are targeted organ trafficking victims are those who are generally vulnerable and residents of largely poor populations. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of thousands of organ trafficking victims who seem to be helpless and unable to protect themselves from those who are considered to be a part of the rich class of individuals (Archer, 2013). The act of those who are rich and participating in organ trafficking brings a high level of exploitation to those who are poor. The buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it causes exploitation between individuals who are rich and poor.
The buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it leads to an unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor. Unfair distribution can be described as an object not being evenly shared amongst a group of individuals. When it comes to organ transplants, there is a high demand, but a low supply. It was recently discovered that around ten percent of all organ transplants are done by organ trafficking through the black market (Today, 2018). The black market is an underground market that shows illegality through an underground economy. With easy access to the black market, the rich are able to buy organs, while the poor are able to sell them. The buying and selling of organs through the black market leaves a very unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor. Though there are illegal ways to transplant organs, there are also ways in which organ transplantation is legal. The average transplant wait time for an organ is three to five years ("The Kidney Transplant Waitlist – What You Need to Know", 2017). Those who are rich have an unfair advantage to this because of the black market. Individuals who are able to afford an organ on the black market proceed with purchasing, therefore leading to an unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor. Overall, the buying and selling of organs is unethical because it leads to an unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor within the United States.
Corruption, exploitation, and unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor is led by the unethical buying and selling of organs within the United States. When it comes to corruption between individuals who are rich and poor, the proper value of how goods are viewed deteriorates. To continue, exploitation between individuals who are rich and poor occurs in the organ buying and selling market and is shown by individuals of a higher class taking advantage of those who are a part of a lower class. Lastly, within the organ buying and selling industry, unfair distribution is present due to the fact that those who are rich have an unfair advantage to organ transplantation versus those who reside in a lower class. Overall, the buying and selling of organs within the United States is unethical because it leads to corruption, exploitation, and unfair distribution between individuals who are rich and poor.
References
Archer, D. (2013). Body snatchers: Organ harvesting for profit. Psychology Today. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/reading-between-the-headlines/201311/body-snatchers-organ-harvesting-profit
Glenn Cohenn, I. (2014). What's Wrong with Selling Organs (and a Taxonomy of Taboo Trade/Commodification Objections) | Bill of Health. Bill of Health. Retrieved 20 April 2021, from https://blog.petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2014/11/11/whats-wrong-with-selling-organs-and-a-taxonomy-of-taboo-tradecommodification-objections/ .
Kerstein, S. (2016). Is it ethical to purchase human organs?. The Conversation. Retrieved 20 April 2021, from https://theconversation.com/is-it-ethical-to-purchase-human-organs-60990 .
Today, A. (2018). Organ Trafficking: The Unseen Form of Human Trafficking - ACAMS Today. ACAMS Today. Retrieved 21 April 2021, from https://www.acamstoday.org/organ-trafficking-the-unseen-form-of-human-trafficking/.
The Kidney Transplant Waitlist – What You Need to Know. National Kidney Foundation. (2017). Retrieved 21 April 2021, from https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/transplant-waitlist#:~:text=Once%20you%20are%20added%20to,geographical%20regions%20of%20the%20country.