Between Law and Reality: Political Disputes, Institutional Strategies, and Access to Legal Abortion at CAISM/Unicamp

• Grant number: 25/13478-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: November 01, 2025
• End date: October 31, 2029
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Anthropology
• Principal Investigator: Joice Melo Vieira
• Grantee: Gabriela Cortez Campos
• Host Institution: Instituto de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas (IFCH). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Access to legal abortion in Brazil has been systematically strained by political, moral, and institutional disputes, driven by the advance of a conservative agenda opposed to sexual and reproductive rights. Despite the legal provisions for abortion in certain circumstances, women face multiple barriers when attempting to access the procedure. The issue becomes even more critical in light of the growing symbolic and concrete criminalization of both healthcare professionals and users, revealing a scenario of institutional insecurity and rights violations. In this context, the main objective of this project is to understand the possible relationships between the political and moral disputes surrounding abortion in Brazil and access to legal abortion services at the Legal Abortion Service of CAISM/Unicamp. The specific objectives include: reconstructing the evolution of the public debate on abortion; identifying institutional changes within CAISM over time; understanding the perceptions and practices of healthcare professionals; and analyzing the strategies adopted to ensure the continuity of the service. The research will be conducted through ethnographic fieldwork at CAISM/Unicamp, combining participant observation, in-depth interviews, and document analysis, articulating empirical data with the theoretical frameworks of reproductive governance and reproductive justice. (AU)