Written by: m.wilson
Here are some notes from a few of the most recent articles/papers in support of reproductive freedom, 2025:
PART ONE
1. The pro-choice movement is changing its name to the “reproductive justice movement.” Therefore, many of the latest articles explain and review research describing why this is a good idea.
2. It is now the “post-Dobbs,” era of pro-choice (reproductive justice) activism. The ‘fallout’ from the loss of Roe v. Wade continues; writers have documented the chronological history and describe what is left in its wake, publishing books (like From Choice to Capabilities: Abortion and Reproductive Justice by Elizabeth Dias and Lisa Lerer); while others surmise that “inclusion” is the answer to the question, ‘where do we go from here?’
ARTICLES
From Choice to Capabilities: Abortion and Reproductive Justice” Sciences Po
Advancing Solutions for Reproductive Justice Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Abortion’s Future Judith Levine
3. “Personhood” – some would argue, is and always has been, the main issue in the way of abortion access, and a great deal of the literature continues to develop its concepts, defining, and adding terminology.
4. Transgender visibility in pregnancy – TGNC adults (trans gender and gender non-conforming) are becoming pregnant during testosterone therapy due to a lack of education. Answering this is the opinion that anti-trans legislation prevents symbiosis between gender and reproductive care in some cases. Trans gender health care and abortion rights have been described as ‘parallel struggles’ in 2024 legislation, by Maryland Matters
5. Bodily autonomy in ‘forced pregnancy’ – a direct result of personhood.
1. The term “Reproductive justice” is supposed to ‘broaden the perspective encompassing the diversity and complexity of reproductive trajectories.’ In the article *From Choice to Capabilities: Abortion and Reproductive Justice we discover the ‘equity’ available to all women in reproductive issues, with special attention to minority-female-groups. “Reproductive justice” must now represent the greater implications of this grand responsibility we have on earth via legislation, and expand beyond the ability to choose whether or not to host pregnancy. This article explains the economics of the movement and critiques the pro-choice framework, which is described as narrow and needs to be more inclusive. This shift into the “reproductive justice” framework will emphasize the social, political, and economic factors influencing reproductive decisions for marginalized communities. *Advancing Solutions for Reproductive Justice Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2024 – describes how the reproductive justice framework is needed to underscore racial and class-based barriers and advocates for evidence-based policies like Medicaid expansion and paid family leave to address systemic health inequities.
Pro-lifers believe it’s the legal responsibility of women to host zygotes and demand enforcement in the name of ‘justice.’ Hopefully, ‘justice’ will be sustainable in contrast with our higher sense of the word for all parties, and will not seem punitive in any way, as it pertains to the specific concerns of our gender. As we all know, if zygotes were to have legal claim to their host like real estate, it would be a very invasive system of justice that could: eventually elevate a zygote’s rights to equal the status of the host-female’s life; affect health and lifestyle decisions that might lead to various criminal reprecautions; create legislation forcing medical interventions (like a mandatory C-section for example); and bring about the loss of personal autonomy, etc. On the other hand, pro-choice focuses on female autonomy and, because of that, does not deviate from the core reality of abortion as a gender issue. It would, for instance, reflect more on the individual if reproductive justice was actually against abortion but could not afford children, while claiming to be for the movement. Abortion access is directly implicated and made visible by American presidential elections, for example, where female minorities have prioritized racial interests over this ultimate autonomy and other related gender issues.
Moreover, reproductive justice is certainly American justice and perhaps Western, especially in consideration of international practices like female infanticide, feticide, and sex-selective abortions, as found in the third world, which are not accepted by feminists. These abortions must slip silently through the justice framework, with NARAL and PP being vocal against legislation banning sex-selective abortion, since it affects bodily autonomy. Such practices are rejected by the American pro-choice movement as they are viewed as a barbaric form of gender discrimination, and only tolerated to avoid restrictive access. In any event, sex-selective abortion is not a widespread issue in the U.S. and is most often associated with Asian American communities.
2. We are all living in the ‘post-Dobbs’ era (Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, 2022), which overturned Roe v. Wade, the case protecting women from their state in reference to abortion, but also in contraception, and fertility techniques. In *Abortion’s Future Judith Levine writes that movements away from a strictly individual “choice” framework toward an understanding of autonomy as a collective, human rights issue, and while drawing parallels to global abortion activism, is the future. She reviews The Fall of Roe: The Rise of a New America by Elizabeth Dias / Lisa Lerer, but surmises that everything covered in the book pretty much just hinges on Roe or another case like it, stating:
“The authors view the denial of bodily autonomy as a matter of individual harm, to be redressed through civil lawsuits, constitutional challenges, and better patient care.”
The Fall of Roe: The Rise of a New America – focuses on the most major public entities involved in abortion rights, like the Center for Reproductive Rights and Planned Parenthood, that were pitted against the Federation of America and conservative groups like the National Right to Life Committee and the Susan B. Anthony List. The authors also name individuals such as Cecile Richards, the head of PPFA, and her opponent, Marjorie Jones Dannenfelser, the founder of SBA, as the heroes in this battle between the powers, as opposed to describing the loss of reproductive rights as a generational – grassroots downfall. About this, Levine states:
“Where are the second-wavers who crashed legislative committee meetings, wrote manifestos, and performed safe abortions before Roe? The scholars and activists of color who drew a now-indelible connection between gender oppression and racism? The bloggers who took organizing online, fluidly moving between screen and street?”
Undue Burden: Life and Death Decisions in Post-Roe America by Shefali Luthra, was a much-needed contribution in the wake of the Dobbs decision, as it shares the unfortunate stories of those most affected by the fetal heartbeat legislation, says Levine. However, she yearns for both of these authors to convey more about what’s coming next, as Naomi Braine does in Abortion Beyond the Law, which draws attention to the new technologies and underground networks currently facilitating abortion in increasingly restrictive environments.
