September 28 is International Safe Abortion Day. This observance began in Latin America and the Caribbean in 1990 as a day of action for decriminalization of abortion. The date was chosen to commemorate the passing of the Law of Free Birth passed by the Brazilian parliament on September 28, 1871–a legal reform intended to provide freedom for the children of enslaved people in Brazil at the time.
Today, 85 different countries will see 400 actions that reach 1.2 million people, according to the Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR), which declared September 28 an International Day in 2011.
Here’s a link to the 2024 Campaign Toolkit. The theme for this year is solidarity in our communities.
“We highlight the collective efforts of our diverse, intergenerational, and cross-border community in advancing the right to access safe abortion and reproductive justice. As we face persistent and emerging threats to abortion rights and reproductive justice, we unite in #AbortionSolidarity to uphold and advance these fundamental freedoms.”
You can read the entire Call To Action to unite in #AbortionSolidarity here, including this:
We call on all our governments to:
- Decriminalize abortion!
- Expand access to safe abortion by removing all policy barriers, expanding legal grounds, increasing upper time limits, and removing third-party approval.
- Ensure freedom and justice for all unjustly criminalized for accessing abortion and for all service providers and human rights defenders criminalized for providing access to safe abortion.
- Establish accessible and inclusive abortion care systems for all.
With recent news of the deaths of at least two women because of state laws banning abortion, the urgent need for global safe abortion care is clear. It’s important to remember that abortion access is a world-wide problem that requires world-wide solutions.
Here in the U.S., we’re seeing the consequences of criminalizing abortion care—they’re deadly.
On International Safe Abortion Day, we stand together as global citizens, united in our determination to protect our bodily autonomy, health, and safety.