Colombia legalizes abortion

Feminists and the “Green Wave” movement did the unthinkable

Megan Valadez / Asst. Opinion Editor / The USD Vista

I am a feminist, an activist, and a progressive woman of color. I am pro-choice and always will be.

I’ve been inspired by people all over the world who fight for abortion rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and equality.

Most recently, I’ve been inspired by the “Green Wave” —  a feminist movement that started in Latin America, where women’s rights activists wear green bandanas and focus on aggressive campaigning and mass protesting for legislative demands centering broadly on women’s autonomy and rights.  

I believe women, girls, and people able to bear children are the only ones who should make decisions about their bodies.
Having an abortion is no longer a crime under Colombian law as of Feb. 21, 2022. This court decision paves the way for the procedure to become widely available across the very conservative Catholic country. The ruling by the Constitutional Court of Colombia comes after years of protest by women across Latin America for greater protection and equal rights, including access to safe abortions.

Colombia’s court decision decriminalizes abortions during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, which means that anyone able to bear children can receive the procedure from a professional without the fear of criminal prosecution. In comparison, the Texas Heartbeat Act, which prohibits abortions beyond six weeks of pregnancy, is utterly disgusting.  According to Planned Parenthood physicians, six weeks pregnant means six weeks from the last menstrual cycle, not that the person has been pregnant for six weeks. Most people don’t even know they are pregnant until much later on.

The fight to decriminalize abortion in Colombia began in September of 2021, when a lawsuit was filed by the “Causa Justa” (Just Cause) movement. They argued that abortion is essential to health care and it should not be regulated in the criminal justice system.

Representatives of Causa Justa wrote in their petition that abortion barriers “affect mainly women living in rural and remote areas, low-income women, adolescent girls, women and girls living in situations of armed conflict and victims of gender violence, including physical and sexual violence.”

Thousands of abortion rights supporters as well as many opponents chanted and protested outside the courthouse in Bogotá, Colombia on Feb. 21, waiting for the court to come to a decision. As women danced in the crowd, celebrating their victory, the other side was not happy with the decision. An anti-abortion organization called “Unidos Por La Vida” (United for Life), was in the crowd and claimed that the court is “decriminalizing the killing of human beings.” We should be defending women and their rights, especially ones that have to do with their bodies.

The fact that other people, especially men, think they have the right to tell women what they can do with their bodies is sickening.

Colombia’s monumental push for legalizing abortions wouldn’t have been possible without following in Argentina’s footsteps.

In 2020, Argentina became the largest nation in Latin America to legalize abortion with the support of the Green Wave movement. Argentina showed the rest of Latin America that it was possible to legalize abortion in a country with strong Catholic and patriarchial ideals.

Similarly, Mexico’s Supreme Court decriminalized abortion in September of 2021, and Argentina’s Congress legalized abortion in late 2020. With Colombia following in their footsteps, three of the four most populated countries in Latin America have now legalized abortion.

Latin America is known for its adherence to the Catholic faith and social conservatism, but more recently, there has been a cultural change spurred by grassroots femininst movements and a younger, more progressive generation of Latin Americans.

According to an article from the New York Times, written by Catalina Martínez Coral, the regional director of the Center for Reproductive Rights in Latin America and the Caribbean, for decades, abortion rights activists in Latin America haved looked to the U.S. to learn the best litigation and advocacy tools. However, that changed over the past few years, especially after Texas passed the Texas Heartbeat Act.

Years ago, it was impossible to imagine that Latin America – home to some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world – would become a benchmark for advances in sexual and reproductive rights. Previously in Colombia, women could be imprisoned for up to four and a half years for having an abortion, even in cases of rape, or when their lives were at risk.

We need to learn from these Latin American countries. Though many of the states in the U.S. allow abortions, I fear for the states that do not and the ones that are pushing to criminalize it. It is wrong to force a woman to bring a child into this world, especially if a woman is not financially stable enough to provide for one, has serious health conditions, is a child of rape or incest, or simply does not want a child. I believe it is incredibly unjust to make a woman do anything with her body that she does not want to do.

If there’s one thing we can learn from Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia, it’s that our fight is not over. In places all over the world, including Honduras, El Salvador, and Texas, abortion is still prohibited and penalized. We have a lot of work to do but I am hopeful that the new generation of progressives, here in the U.S. and all over the world, follow in Colombia’s footsteps and continue to fight for equality and reproductive rights.