Our bodies are pieces of our own land—sacred territories we live within, grapple with, and care for. They’re dynamic, changing through a series of beautiful milestones. Our likes, dislikes, and perspectives about our bodies likewise follow a similar trajectory of change. As a female, I’ve learned to celebrate the changes in my body, however subtle they may be—to honor my imperfections and gain confidence over the body I live within. Doing this, I’ve also learned that my body, much like those of countless women before me, has been fiercely debated over. It has been—and continues to be—objectified in the rhetoric of “choice” and “life,” waiting to be sorted into what feels like a scale where motherhood is weighed against abortion. The two sides of the scale make the debate seem all too black-and-white as if no other factors—cost of medical needs, sexual assault, rape, age, family situation, health risks of expectant mother—are involved.

For decades, Latin American countries have failed to recognize the multi-dimensionality of abortion. As a result, countries like Argentina have implemented aggressive measures for women who choose abortion. The bulk of these women come from diverse backgrounds: they’re young and poor; they’re teenagers finishing their last year of high school and ambitious women aspiring to pursue professional goals; they’re survivors of sexual assault and victims of rape. Although politicians recognize that such women are burdened by unwanted pregnancies, pregnancies they may not be prepared for or desire, they fail to provide these women with the option of a dignified abortion. Instead, doctors in majority Catholic countries, such as Argentina, refuse to grant abortions without proof of physical or physiological risk. Thus, women who choose to have an abortion—due to personal choice, underlying health risks, sexual assault—are forced to resort to unsafe measures. In fact, The Foundation for the Study and Research for Women (FEIM), estimates that legal abortions account only for 20-25% of the over 350,000-450,000 terminations that take place in Argentina each year. 

Argentina has a history of progressivism that is relatively unique from that of other Latin American countries. In 2010, Congress approved same-sex marriage, making Argentina the first Latin American nation to give individuals a right that many other nations only recently made legal. Then, in 2012, Argentina approved one of the world’s most progressive gender identity laws, allowing individuals to alter their gender on official documents prior to having surgery. Such legal actions have paved a path for activism to be recognized and legislatively supported in Argentina, inspiring more communities to ensure their rights are addressed in the nation’s political agenda. In 2015, abortion-rights activists in Argentina formed a movement known as Ni Una Menos, or not one woman less, in response to the intensifying need for safe abortion methods. Members of the movement have put forth intensive measures, from building a list of doctors who will provide abortion, support women who undergo abortions and have shown an admirable commitment to helping women navigate a system that discourages choice.

Despite the movement’s renewed efforts, it wasn’t until the COVID-pandemic that the severity of the abortion debate reached the political stage. Since many doctors who once performed safe abortions were recruited into the COVID-19 effort and a strict lockdown prevented Argentinians from leaving their homes unless absolutely necessary, numerous women, desperate and placed in a difficult situation, resorted to unsafe methods of abortion. Though some women are able to pay for safe abortion methods, others, poorer and having to fulfill other financial responsibilities, fell back on dangerous abortion methods. Recognizing this, law-makers immediately put forth a Presidentially-backed bill to legalize abortion in March, as strict lockdown regulations restricted travel and access to medications. Since the bill was delayed until 2021, countless women—many of whom were isolated from family members and friends due to the pandemic—were forced to navigate a chaotic healthcare system and make life-altering decisions that endangered their own health. 

On April 13th, The Health Ministry of Argentina issued a declarative stating that Legal Interruptions of Pregnancy (ILE) are in essential service, promising to work with provinces across the country to ensure that such a service is made available for those in need. The declarative states that “abortion will be guaranteed on the grounds of rape, mental, social, and physical health.” However, getting all provinces, especially eight provinces in northern Argentina which have been noted to be particularly conservative in the abortion debate, to agree to this declaration has been difficult. When women residing in such regions are denied an abortion, they rarely continue with an unwanted pregnancy and elect to put their lives in danger by conducting unsafe, unhygienic procedures at home. As summarized by Mabel Bianco, physician and Director of the FEIM, “the pandemic is a threat to life; not only from the virus but also the consequences of being locked up for women and girls.”

On December 30th, activists’ relentless lobbying to legalize abortion in light of the pandemic successfully culminated in a landmark vote to make Argentina the first—and largest—Latin American nation to legalize abortion and give women the dignified option to choose. After a decades-long battle, activists finally gained political traction to instigate change on a national level, enabling women of all socio-economic levels to gain access to safe abortion procedures. The mood of movement leaders and participants—elated, though recognizing that activism will have to continue—was visible in the streets of Argentina. A sea of green handkerchiefs, which have come to symbolize the movement, rippled across the street as women of all ages celebrated what had been accomplished. In the midst of crowded streets and roaring music, what surfaced was not only one singular day’s victory, but rather years of activism, a gradual change of public opinion, and a fierce stance against the Catholic Church. The legalization of abortion in Argentina was momentous—a day that recognized the grief for women who have been lost through unsafe abortion and the power of those who will honor their bodies and be given the right to choose.