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6 June 2022

Latin America’s ‘Green Tide’ Has Lessons for U.S. Abortion Rights Activists

Cora Fernández Anderson

Across the Americas, abortion rights appear to be heading in very different directions. Looking solely at the U.S., the recent leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion suggests that the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling—which established a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restrictions—could soon be overturned. If so, it would be a symptom of a general assault on reproductive rights as well as civil rights more broadly. However, looking further south, a different story emerges. Throughout Latin America, feminist movements are winning major victories on abortion rights, and their lessons are instructive: Organizing matters, but so does strategy, how issues are framed to the public and the use of symbols to unite a movement.

Latin America has historically criminalized abortion under most circumstances, a legacy of colonial rule from the Spanish and Portuguese empires, as well as the Catholic Church, which continued to influence criminal codes after countries gained independence in the 19th century. The church remains a significant political actor in most countries; until recently, its views on reproduction—condemning not only abortion but also the use of contraception—dictated most of the region’s policies.

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