France Is Voting to Enshrine Abortion Rights in Constitution
TimeFeb 21
France Makes Abortion a Constitutional Right
Image copyright: Owen Franken /Corbis/Contributor/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
French MPs and senators on Monday voted in a joint session of parliament to enshrine "guaranteed" access to abortion in the nation's constitution, after 780 of 925 representatives supported introducing an amendment.
Article 34 of France's constitution now reads: "The law determines the conditions by which is exercised the freedom of women to have recourse to an abortion, which is guaranteed."
The Spin
Narrative A
Versailles has made crucial progress in the protection of women's rights, all while the rest of the world seems to be taking steps backwards. Coming amid the dark ripples cast by the US Supreme Court's regressive decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, and another US court's recent move to legally treat embryos as children, the French parliament has sent out a reassuring message to anguished women across the world that it is possible to uphold reproductive rights.
Narrative B
It's ironic that legitimizing the taking of infants' lives is being celebrated in an era of increased emphasis on human rights. Equality and progress should be celebrated, but it should also be emphasized that entrenching the right to terminate pregnancy in France's constitution infringes on the rights of unborn children. This damaging reform risks doing great practical and moral harm.