Abortion is illegal in almost every circumstance in Ireland, making it the only democracy in the western world to have such a constitutional ban. Between 1980 and 2015, at least 165,438 Irish women and girls accessed UK abortion services. In 2016, the figure was 3,265. Any woman or girl who procures an abortion, or anyone who assists a woman to procure an abortion in Ireland can be criminalised and imprisoned for up to fourteen years. A woman may not procure an abortion in Ireland if she is pregnant due to incest or rape, or to prevent inevitable miscarriage and fatal foetal abnormality. The movement to repeal the Eighth Amendment and make abortion legal in Ireland has grown massively over the last few years. This anthology shares the literature, personal stories, opinions, photography, art and design produced by the movement that catalysed 2018’s momentous referendum. Featuring prize-winning novelists, critically acclaimed poets, cutting-edge artists and journalists on the front line, this anthology will be the definitive collection of the art inspired by the most pressing debate in contemporary Ireland, and beyond. Contributors include: Lisa McInerney, Anne Enright, Louise O’Neill, Caitlin Moran, Tara Flynn, Aisling Bea, Sinead Gleeson, Emmet Kirwan.

Available Open Access under CC-BY licence. Irish law currently permits abortion only where the life of the pregnant woman is at risk. Since 1983, the 8th Amendment to the Constitution has recognised the “unborn” as having a right to life equal to that of the “mother”. Consequently, most people in Ireland who wish to bring their pregnancies to an end either import the abortion pill illegally, travel abroad to access abortion, or continue with the pregnancy against their will. Now, however, there are signs of change. A constitutional referendum will be held in 2018, after which it will be possible to reimagine, redesign, and reform the law on abortion. Written by experts in the field, this book draws on experience from other countries, as well as experiences of maternal medical care in Ireland, to call for a feminist, woman-centered, and rights-based radical new approach to abortion law in Ireland. Directly challenging grounds-based abortion law, this accessible guide brings together feminist analysis, comparative research, human rights law, and political awareness to propose a new constitutional and legislative settlement on reproductive autonomy in Ireland. It offers practical proposals for policymakers and advocates, including model legislation, making it an essential campaigning tool leading up to the referendum.

The 8th amendment of the Irish Constitution: “The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.” This famous, much loved, clause in the Irish constitution was repealed on the 25th of May 2018, allowing the passage of one of the most liberal abortion laws in Europe in a traditionally pro-life country. This book seeks to answer the conundrum of why this happened, in particular why there was such a large Yes vote overturning decades of pro-life activism in the country. It centres on the questions of media bias, feminism, anticlericalism, and the subtle but serious political effects of the rise of atheism in modern Ireland.

The referendum to overturn Ireland's near-total abortion ban in 2018 stands as one of the most remarkable political events of recent times. The campaign to repeal the 8th amendment succeeded not only in challenging centuries of religious and patriarchal dogma, but in signalling a major transformation in Irish society itself. After Repeal explores both the campaign and the implications of the referendum result for politics, identity and culture today. Bringing together a range of international perspectives, this collection transcends geographical and disciplinary boundaries while exploring themes including activism, artwork, social movements, law, media, democratic institutions, and reproductive technologies. This work looks beyond the Irish context and to the future, offering unique insight into the wider struggle for reproductive justice around the world.

The referendum to overturn Ireland’s near-total abortion ban in 2018 stands as one of the most remarkable political events of recent times. The campaign to repeal the 8th amendment succeeded not only in challenging centuries of religious and patriarchal dogma, but in signalling a major transformation in Irish society itself. After Repeal explores both the campaign and the implications of the referendum result for politics, identity and culture today. Bringing together a range of international perspectives, this collection transcends geographical and disciplinary boundaries while exploring themes including activism, artwork, social movements, law, media, democratic institutions, and reproductive technologies. This work looks beyond the Irish context and to the future, offering unique insight into the wider struggle for reproductive justice around the world.

Available Open Access under CC-BY licence. Irish law currently permits abortion only where the life of the pregnant woman is at risk. Since 1983, the 8th Amendment to the Constitution has recognised the “unborn” as having a right to life equal to that of the “mother”. Consequently, most people in Ireland who wish to bring their pregnancies to an end either import the abortion pill illegally, travel abroad to access abortion, or continue with the pregnancy against their will. Now, however, there are signs of change. A constitutional referendum will be held in 2018, after which it will be possible to reimagine, redesign, and reform the law on abortion. Written by experts in the field, this book draws on experience from other countries, as well as experiences of maternal medical care in Ireland, to call for a feminist, woman-centered, and rights-based radical new approach to abortion law in Ireland. Directly challenging grounds-based abortion law, this accessible guide brings together feminist analysis, comparative research, human rights law, and political awareness to propose a new constitutional and legislative settlement on reproductive autonomy in Ireland. It offers practical proposals for policymakers and advocates, including model legislation, making it an essential campaigning tool leading up to the referendum.

This book asks the crucial question of how it came to pass that on the 25 May 2018, the Irish electorate voted by a landslide in favour of changing its abortion legislation that, for the previous thirty-five years, had been one of the most restrictive regimes in Europe. The author shows how, alongside traditional campaigning tactics such as street demonstrations, door-to-door canvassing, and the distribution of pro-choice merchandise and information leaflets, a key strategy of pro-choice advocacy groups was to encourage first-person abortion story-sharing by women in their efforts to repeal the Eighth Amendment, which had effectively banned abortion provision in the country. The book argues that a normalizing of abortion talk took place in the lead-up to the referendum, with women speaking publicly in unprecedented numbers about their abortion histories. These women storytellers were mirroring certain pro-choice movements in other contexts, where a new ‘sound it loud, say it proud’ narrative around abortion experiences has emerged as a central contemporary strategy for destigmatizing abortion discourse. Students and scholars across a range of disciplines, including law, gender studies, sociology, and human geography, will find this book of interest.