Available Open Access under CC-BY licence. Irish law currently permits abortion only where the life of the pregnant woman is at risk. Since 1983, the 8th Amendment to the Constitution has recognised the “unborn” as having a right to life equal to that of the “mother”. Consequently, most people in Ireland who wish to bring their pregnancies to an end either import the abortion pill illegally, travel abroad to access abortion, or continue with the pregnancy against their will. Now, however, there are signs of change. A constitutional referendum will be held in 2018, after which it will be possible to reimagine, redesign, and reform the law on abortion. Written by experts in the field, this book draws on experience from other countries, as well as experiences of maternal medical care in Ireland, to call for a feminist, woman-centered, and rights-based radical new approach to abortion law in Ireland. Directly challenging grounds-based abortion law, this accessible guide brings together feminist analysis, comparative research, human rights law, and political awareness to propose a new constitutional and legislative settlement on reproductive autonomy in Ireland. It offers practical proposals for policymakers and advocates, including model legislation, making it an essential campaigning tool leading up to the referendum.

In 1991, the people of Ireland elected Mary Robinson, a women's rights crusader who supported legalized birth control and divorce, as their president. The country seemed poised for massive social and legal change, but it became apparent that even though Ireland at the dawn of the 21st century would be very different from the Ireland of the past, many fundamentals would remain the same. This book examines Irish abortion and divorce law in their historical, religious, and cultural contexts. Its main focus is on the well-publicized referenda and court cases of the 1980s and 1990s, with special attention given to their roots and potential long-term effects on the communitarian Irish culture and opportunities for Irish women. The author identifies and discusses three forces that have affected Irish law and mores, especially those relating to abortion and divorce: economic insecurity; a sense of group loyalty and identification, particularly within families and churches; and Catholic teaching about the common good.

This text provides an oral history of the London-Irish women who supported Irish abortion seekers between 1980 and 2000

A celebration and analysis of a 35-year long grassroots movement that successfully overturned the ban on abortion in Ireland

Abortion is illegal in almost every circumstance in Ireland, making it the only democracy in the western world to have such a constitutional ban. Between 1980 and 2015, at least 165,438 Irish women and girls accessed UK abortion services. In 2016, the figure was 3,265. Any woman or girl who procures an abortion, or anyone who assists a woman to procure an abortion in Ireland can be criminalised and imprisoned for up to fourteen years. A woman may not procure an abortion in Ireland if she is pregnant due to incest or rape, or to prevent inevitable miscarriage and fatal foetal abnormality. The movement to repeal the Eighth Amendment and make abortion legal in Ireland has grown massively over the last few years. This anthology shares the literature, personal stories, opinions, photography, art and design produced by the movement that catalysed 2018’s momentous referendum. Featuring prize-winning novelists, critically acclaimed poets, cutting-edge artists and journalists on the front line, this anthology will be the definitive collection of the art inspired by the most pressing debate in contemporary Ireland, and beyond. Contributors include: Lisa McInerney, Anne Enright, Louise O’Neill, Caitlin Moran, Tara Flynn, Aisling Bea, Sinead Gleeson, Emmet Kirwan.

"In these essays, Irish feminist scholars and activists explore the politics of abortion in one of the most profoundly Catholic and traditional countries in Europe. Writing from a wide range of historical and contemporary perspectives, the authors consider the social, ethical and political dimensions of the abortion debate and its implications for women's freedom and life-choices." (Excerpt)

This book reframes the Irish abortion narrative within the history of women’s reproductive health and explores the similarities and differences that shaped the history of abortion within the two states on the island of Ireland. Since the legalisation of abortion in Britain in 1967, an estimated 200,000 women have travelled from Ireland to England for an abortion. However, this abortion trail is at least a century old and began with women migrating to Britain to flee moral intolerance in Ireland towards unmarried mothers and their offspring. This study highlights how attitudes to unmarried motherhood reflected a broader cultural acceptance that morality should trump concerns regarding maternal health. This rationale bled into social and political responses to birth control and abortion and was underpinned by an acknowledgement that in prioritising morality some women would die.

This book provides a comprehensive study of abortion politics and policy in Northern Ireland. Whilst there is a substantial amount of literature on abortion in Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom, there has been scant academic attention paid to the situation in Northern Ireland. Adopting a feminist institutionalist framework, the book illustrates the ways in which abortion has been addressed at both the national institution at Westminster and the devolved institution at Stormont. Covering the period from early peace process in the 1980s to the present day, the text will be of interest to politics scholars, but also sociologists, historians and students of Irish studies.

The abortion debate in the United States is confused. Ratings-driven media coverage highlights extreme views and creates the illusion that we are stuck in a hopeless stalemate. In this book Charles Camosy argues that our polarized public discourse hides the fact that most Americans actually agree on the major issues at stake in abortion morality and law. Unpacking the complexity of the abortion issue, Camosy shows that placing oneself on either side of the typical polarizations -- pro-life vs. pro-choice, liberal vs. conservative, Democrat vs. Republican -- only serves to further confuse the debate and limits our ability to have fruitful dialogue. Camosy then proposes a new public policy that he believes is consistent with the beliefs of the broad majority of Americans and supported by the best ideas and arguments about abortion from both secular and religious sources.

This thought-provoking book sets out the ethical arguments for a woman’s right to choose. Drawing on the traditions of sociological thinking and moral philosophy, it maintains that there is a strong moral case for recognizing autonomy in personal decision-making about reproductive intentions. More than this, it argues that to prevent a woman from making her own choice to continue or end her pregnancy is to undermine the essence of her humanity. The author, a provider of abortion services in the UK, asserts that true respect for human life and true regard for individual conscience demand that we respect a woman’s right to decide, and that support for a woman’s right to a termination has moral foundations and ethical integrity. This fresh perspective on abortion will interest both pro- and anti-choice individuals and organizations, along with academics in the fields of gender studies, philosophy, ethics and religion.