Abortion and the Right to Privacy

Legalizing abortion does not mean that all pregnant women should get one. Rather, it is about the right to privacy, freedom of choice and the preservation of female autonomy.

Written by Timinepre Cole

Oct 28, 2019

Civil rights groups, activists and members of the public march through Braamfontein, Johannesburg on International Safe Abortion day. MADELENE CRONJÉ

There are about forty-four million abortions performed globally each year, and slightly under half of these are performed unsafely. The controversies surrounding abortion have always centred on the moral permissibility of the act and the justification of laws permitting or restricting abortion.

These debates are often spearheaded by two groups: ‘pro-life’ groups, who favour legal restrictions on abortion and ‘pro-choice’ groups, who oppose such restrictions. While pro-life groups argue that a foetus is a being with a right to life, making abortion morally the same as murder; pro-choice groups argue that women have certain reproductive rights which includes the choice not to carry a pregnancy to full term.

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About the Author

Timinepre Cole

is a writer from Yenagoa, Nigeria now living in London. As a Black, queer person, their work focuses on the underexplored angles of the complex lives of women and members of the LGBTQ+ community and how laws and policies affect people at the intersection of misogynoir and queerphobia.

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Abortion and the Right to Privacy