What is Reproductive Justice and Why is it Important?

Reproductive Justice, a term coined by the organisation SisterSong, is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, and parent the children one has in safe and sustainable communities.

The term combines the understanding of Reproductive Rights & Social Justice:

  • Reproductive Rights include every person's individual and legal right to reproductive health care services.

  • Reproductive Justice connects this right to reproductive health care services with the political, economic, and social inequalities that affect a person's ability to access said health care.

  • Reproductive Justice extends beyond abortion access to include expanding access to birth control, comprehensive sexual education, alternative birth options, adequate prenatal and pregnancy care, domestic violence assistance, adequate working wages, safe communities and homes, and much more.

  • Reproductive Justice is about access, not choice. While most mainstream media portrays the debate as pro-choice vs. pro-life, simply having the choice is not enough. When it comes to abortion access, many people of colour cannot afford it and can't travel hundreds of kilometres to the nearest clinic.

As NARAL puts it, "a right is not a right if you can't access it." SisterSong reiterates that "there is no choice when there is no access."