NEGPEI invites: PhD dissertation defense of Alessandra Jungs de Almeida
NEGPEI invites the UFSC community and beyond to the dissertation defense of PPGRI doctoral student and NEGPEI member Alessandra Jungs de Almeida.
Please, RSVP in the following link.
Title: Reproductive Rights in Latin America: Transnational Activism and the Evolution of Abortion Legalization and Criminalization Policies in Argentina and Brazil (2010-2022)
Abstract: This PhD dissertation analyzes how transnational feminist and anti-feminist movements promoted the diffusion and internalization of international norms regarding reproductive rights in Brazil and Argentina between 2010 and 2022. The central question is: “How did transnational feminist and anti-feminist activism promote and internalize international norms on the legalization and criminalization of abortion in Brazil and Argentina?” The objectives of the dissertation include: (1) identifying the actions, strategies, and methods of transnational feminist and anti-feminist activism in Brazil and Argentina, historically situating their actions; (2) theoretically analyzing the actions of these activism in multilateral forums related to gender and their relationship with the foreign policy of both countries; (3) understanding how these transnational activism demand, refuse, and produce data for their political goals. The developed argument is that the feminist movement of the Green Wave, which emerged in Argentina but operated transnationally, managed to articulate and disseminate the norm of abortion legalization regionally without relying on the structures of the global North, challenging classical theories of norm diffusion that emphasize the dependence of transnational networks on the global North. On the other hand, transnational anti-abortion movements in Brazil and Argentina used counter-framing strategies, despite not having formal involvement in most regional international organizations. Furthermore, the demand, refusal, or production of data by transnational feminist activism varied according to the need for capital and human resources. Sometimes, local organizations prioritized internal data activism, using transnational data activism as a complementary resource. In contrast, anti-abortion activists used counter-framing strategies, employing the international language of human rights to oppose the data production efforts of pro-reproductive rights groups. The methodology combines interviews with 17 activists from transnational organizations and social movements, a document analysis of 770 multilateral forum documents (249 of which refer to reproductive rights), and a discourse analysis of material published by anti-abortion groups on their social media.
