The court struck down the Texas law and set a legal precedent around the country, leading more than 30 other states to overturn their abortion bans. The decision made abortion not only profoundly safer but far more accessible to millions of women around the US."America's movement for choice has been such a powerful leader globally in terms of access to abortion and contraception," says Sarah Hodges, a historian at the University of Warwick, UK.But 44 years on, abortion remains one of the US's most controversial and polarizing issues, with people pitted against one another as either 'pro-choice' or 'pro-life'. Today, many argue that women's sexual and reproductive rights are under renewed attack, fueled by religion and the conservative right wing.As of August 1, 2017, 53 state-level abortion restrictions have been enacted in the US.
Elizabeth Nash, senior state issues manager at Guttmacher, says the goal of implementing more restrictions – which are concentrated in the southern and Midwestern states – is to completely rid states of abortion providers. "Many legislators are motivated by wanting to eliminate access to abortion entirely," she says. "If they could they would pass abortion bans but they can't.Today, many argue that women's sexual and reproductive rights are under renewed attack in the US, fueled by religion and the conservative right wing.
Millions face structural, institutional and cultural barriers to using accredited abortion services – things like stigma, not knowing the law, expense, fears about confidentiality, and lack of access to healthcare institutions. Such barriers disproportionately affect poorer women, who often live in remote, rural areas.Another major barrier is a woman's lack of agency, explains Muttreja, who says that almost half of women seeking an abortion don't tell their husbands. This, she says, often leads them to risk their lives in back alleyways with uncertified providers or quacks, or take over-the-counter abortion pills with little guidance."I believe for every woman who dies there's 20 women who live life dying through serious morbidities because of how these abortions are done," she says at her office in New Delhi. "They don't want their husbands to know they're getting an abortion because often abortion is a proxy for contraception. Women are not expected to use contraceptives [but] abortion would be a much worse offense.As the US continues to clamp down on abortion, India is working– albeit slowly–to extend women's access to it.
In contrast, in Manipur the unmet need has almost doubled, from 16 percent in 2005 to 30 per cent in 2015. And use of modern contraceptives has almost halved, from 24 percent to 13 per cent. The reasons for this change are unclear, but one of the results, experts suggest, is a rise in the number of women relying on abortion for birth control. "If you don't give family planning then abortion will increase," says Nabakanta Sharma, a gynecologist and obstetrician in Imphal. "It's happening in Manipur."Millions face structural, institutional and cultural barriers to using accredited abortion services–things like stigma, not knowing the law, expense, fears about confidentiality, and lack of access to healthcare institutions.
So she missed a week. And then she missed a period."As my case shows, if you're misinformed you end up not knowing how your body works and having an unintended pregnancy," she says from Washington, where the now 31-year-old works as a reproductive justice activist and board member at NARAL Pro-Choice America, an organization working to expand access to abortion.Sanathoi says her baby was unplanned; she doesn't know how to prevent pregnancy.
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Her boyfriend suggested she keep the baby and give it to his auntie to look after. That wasn't an option for Renee. The other possibility involved maxing out the credit card her parents had given her – strictly for emergencies – when she was 17. She'd never used it before but it had a $500 limit – just the amount she needed to pay for the procedure. And this, she thought, was an emergency.
Many men also believe that sterilization will reduce their libidos and make sex less pleasurable. (There's no science to back this claim.)The government recognizes the need to get the onus for family planning off of women – especially in the absence of a wide range of contraceptive options – and increase the popularity of male sterilization. In its National Health Policy, the government sets an aim of increasing male sterilization at least six-fold. But how it will reach this goal remains to be seen."Men do not take responsibility for family planning – they think it's the business of women," Muttreja says. "Family planning is not a women's issue, it's a people's issue. [Men] have to take… more responsibility than women because they have all the agency." Women, she argues, lack the authority or opportunity to make decisions about childbearing, let alone asking their husbands to get sterilized."Women can't negotiate contraception. It's something they have to keep to themselves because often even if a woman suggests her husband to wear a condom, she's seen as promiscuous," she says.Sarah Hodges agrees. "No one opts in for sterilization. These are women who don't have choice over most things in their life."Men do not take responsibility for family planning – they think it's the business of women.