The Irish feminist movement and the fight for safe and legal abortion services

national | gender and sexuality | event notice Wednesday April 15, 2009 16:37 by h - Sociology Society NUIM

Changing Irish Society

NUIM Sociology Society presents an evening discussion

Changing Irish Society
The Irish feminist movement and the fight for safe and legal abortion services

Next Tuesday 21st April @ 6.30pm
Venue – Auxilia room 1
Wine and Snacks from 6pm

Speaker from 'Womens Information Network - the 1980's abortion information helpline'

A history of pro-choice activism
by Irish feminist and Sociologist Aileen O Carroll

The current campaign for women's right to choose
by Sinead Ahern, feminist and spokesperson for activist group 'Choice Ireland'

Changing Irish Society - The Irish feminist movement and the fight for safe and legal abortion services

By continuing to legislate and campaign against women's right to
choose the most powerful and wealthy institutions in Irish society,
the state and the church, continue to wield their strength over the
most marginalised by denying women access to their fundamental rights
over their own bodies.

Over the last number of decades Irish feminists have struggled against
these powerful institutions; by providing counselling for women
seeking abortion services; through their activism during the X case;
by challenging misinformation in the run up to Ireland's abortion
referendum; through their support of 'Miss D' in her case against the
HSE in the high court and through a sustained information campaign
against rogue crises pregnancy counselling agencies such as the
'women's resource centre' who provide false and dangerous information
to pregnant women.

While this struggle has changed Irish society, enabling women to
access information on reproductive choices, abortion remains illegal.
20 women a day continue to travel overseas for abortion services.

This intention of this discussion is to chart the gains won by the
Irish Feminist movement in the fight for safe and legal abortion and
to question why the state and the church continues to legislate and
campaign against women's right to choose.