Making abortion legal

Strengthening local and global movements for abortion rights

Women and girls—and all people who can get pregnant—can’t determine their own futures without laws and policies that support access to abortion and contraception. We advocate around the world for legal, accessible abortion.

Ipas works to educate policymakers, and to train police and lawyers on how to uphold the rights of those seeking abortion care. We also partner with local groups that advocate for sexual and reproductive rights.

Countries around the world continue to advance abortion rights. In the United States, it’s a different story.

Unpacking the Texas abortion ban: White supremacy in the anti-rights movement

A thought-provoking conversation between Ipas President and CEO Anu Kumar and award-winning author, advocate, professor and social commentator Michele Goodwin. Both have spoken and written about how white supremacy drives the anti-abortion, anti-rights movement. In this virtual event, they touch on various examples, such as U.S. foreign policies like the Helms Amendment, the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and the recent law in Texas that effectively bans abortion after six weeks and empowers “bounty hunters” to report anyone connected to abortion.

We need ‘a clearer view’ of the impact of the world’s abortion laws

The number of people who live in humanitarian settings and need abortion care is growing, as is the number of people managing their abortions outside the formal health system. This calls for a more rigorous study of the true impact of abortion laws.

Meet Bolivia’s champions for abortion rights

Inspiring leaders are helping drive Bolivia’s movement for safe, legal abortion—with support from Ipas Bolivia and others in their grassroots coalition.

Ending criminal abortion laws

When abortion is a crime, women suffer—along with their families and communities. While criminal abortion laws intend to prevent abortion, the reality is they do not. Instead, these laws increase the number of women and girls who resort to unsafe abortion methods, risking death or injury as a result. Moreover, where abortion is illegal, women and health providers can be prosecuted and sent to jail for seeking or providing abortions. Around the globe, Ipas works with partners to raise awareness of the tragic consequences of criminal abortion laws and the importance of safe, legal abortion to protect women’s health and human rights.

Few people realize that women actually go to jail in countries where abortion is illegal. It’s a connection people don’t make.

– Ipas Senior Policy Advisor Gillian Kane

Resist, persist and take the long view

Ipas President and CEO Anu Kumar says the global movement for abortion rights has made great progress since the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development—and we must keep fighting.

Read her blog