Open AccessColonialism, Human Rights, and Abortion in Ireland
Author(s) -
Rachel Connelly
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
elements
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2380-6087
pISSN - 2378-0185
DOI - 10.6017/eurj.v16i1.14057
Subject(s) - narrative , irish , abortion , referendum , gender studies , politics , human rights , sociology , liberalization , law , political science , literature , art , linguistics , philosophy , biology , genetics , pregnancy
This essay explores the role of narratives in the field of the Irish abortion debate. In specific, it explores the different types of narratives that both the pro-choice and pro-life groups manipulate in order to draw support from The Irish populace. The author explains that the pro-choice groups employ political-legal narratives To argue for the right to abortion whereas historical narratives and anti-British sentiments are more commonly found within pro-life narratives. However, the true purpose of the pro-life narratives is to prevent the secularization and liberalization of Ireland's laws, thereby maintaining the patriarchy at the top of the social hierarchy. However, with the 2018 referendum on the constitutional ban on abortion resulting in a liberalization of Ireland's abortion laws, the lack of success on The pro-life end is revealed, and a possible wave of liberalization may follow to permanently shift the social hierarchy.