This blog seeks to explore how the Catholic Church, political elites, and feminist organizations reacted to the 2007 Mexico City law that decriminalized abortion. This blog will be a scholarly resource analyzing the religious, political, and social history of abortion in Mexico for women outside of Mexico who want to pass similar legislation in other countries.
The decriminalization of abortion in Mexico City signified a notable transformation of reproductive policy in Mexico. The 2007 Mexico City abortion law decriminalized abortion and increased women’s access to abortion. The law permitted abortion within the first trimester (first 12 weeks) without the permission of judicial institutions. The unprecedented Mexico City abortion policy transformed abortion from a crime to a right. However, while this can be considered a considerable success for feminist movements and pro-decision groups in Mexico City, the policy triggered a widespread tightening of abortion restrictions and increasing of penalties throughout the states led by religiously affiliated organizations.
The Catholic Church and feminist organizations had already effectively organized and mobilized in opposition and in support, respectively, of this legislative transformation. Due to effective mobilization of anti-abortion groups and political elites, the decriminalization of abortion in Mexico City also sparked backlash in other states who reformed the state constitution in order to protect life from the moment of conception. We ultimately determined that the 2007 abortion law created more harm than benefits for women because, while it provided legal access to abortions in certain circumstances, there was no consistency across states which effectively allowed state officials and medical professionals to obstruct the authorization of abortions without penalization.
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