Debates Around Abortion in the Global North

By means of a historical, legal and scientific approach, this book identifies the issues, progress and setbacks in the right for women to access abortion in various countries of the Global North. The book provides insights on the past, present and potential actions and struggles in the future about continuing to have the right to procure an abortion. Rites and rituals in order to better understand the practices of Asian countries, such as China, Japan and Taiwan, permeate discussions and debates. The volume presents the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic on access to abortion healthcare services and abortion, and the innovative initiatives and schemes designed and implemented. The latter encourages health professionals and decision-makers to reflect on the 'good practices' and retain and develop over the long term. This edited collection is intended for academics and students across the social sciences and healthcare sector, members of the legal profession, healthcare professionals, activists, policy-makers, and any stakeholders working for and caring about women's reproductive rights and abortion rights.

Fabienne Portier-Le Cocq is Professor of Contemporary British Studies. She is a member of the research group Histoire et Dynamique des espaces anglophones (HDEA) at Paris-Sorbonne University. She conducted comparative research for the European Commission (Daphne II programme) for five years. She authored Sexualités et maternités des adolescentes: voix anglaises et écossaises (2009), and co-authored Les Politiques de jeunesse au Royaume-Uni et en France (2012).This is her third book with Routledge and her latest publication is Motherhood in Contemporary International Perspective, Continuity and Change (2020).

'Women's Legal Rights to Abortion: Watch Out!' FABIENNE PORTIER-LE COCQ PART 1: Abortion in Historical Context 1 Debating Therapeutic Abortion in Nineteenth-Century Belgium JOLIEN GIJBELS 2 The 'Birth' of a Modern Nation: A Brief History of Women's Access to Abortion in China CHANG LIU AND KAILING XIE PART 2: Abortion, Politics, and Social Policy 3 Abortion: The Contraception Paradox in England ANN FUREDI 4 A Bilingual Analysis of Canada's Bill C-484: The Unborn Victims of Crime Act ANNE-MARIE RIVARD PART 3: Abortion and Legislation 5 Birth Control Policies and Abortion Issues in Post-Communist Russia BORIS DENISOV AND VICTORIA SAKEVICH 6 Abortion Law in Italy: A Pluralist Legislation Lacking Effectiveness? LUCIA BUSATTA PART 4: Abortion, Culture, and Traditions 7 Rising Tides, Ebbing Tides: Appeasement Rituals Around Perinatal Death in Contemporary Japan CARINA ROTH 8 The Evolving Personhood of the Foetus in Taiwan Within the Transnational Flow GRACE CHENG-YING LIN PART 5: The Role of Healthcare Professionals 9 Abortion Versus Contraception: The Roots of a Terminological Professional Debate PILAR LEON-SANZ 10 Abortion in Times of the Covid-19 Pandemic FABIENNE PORTIER-LE COCQ