Consent and Reproductive Coercion

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter maps a recent history of reproductive coercion and abuse in Australia centred on intimate partner relationships and familial relationships in the mid-to-late-twentieth century. Reproductive coercion and abuse are currently understood as the interference in another person’s reproductive choices—forced termination of pregnancy, forced continuation of pregnancy, prohibiting contraceptive use, or imposing contraceptive use. This particular violation of consent in intimate partner and familial relationships has been documented as an extension of sexual violence under certain circumstances. Thus far, few scholarly works have focused on understanding the pervasiveness of this phenomenon in decades past. In heterosexual intimate partner relationships, manipulation, promises of marriage and love, and physical and sexual violence were used to enact reproductive coercion and abuse in quite explicit ways. When considering parents’ role in making reproductive choices for their children, financial incentives, homelessness, and emotional manipulation were most frequently used. In the same ways that experiences of rape and sexual abuse hinge on notions of consent and bodily autonomy, reproductive coercion is a form of sexual and medical violence that violates an individual’s right to make informed choices. Examining its history allows us to see how reproductive coercion and abuse are often coupled with other instances of sexual violence, and it facilitates a broader understanding of the ways in which autonomy and coercion operate in relationships.