Abortion to Abolition - by Martha Paynter (Paperback)

About the Book

"Abortion and contraception are often understood as the central aspect of reproductive justice. But there is much more involved, from bodily autonomy, to freedom from sexual violence, to freedom to define the size and make up of our families, and to the right to parent the children we choose to have in safe and sustainable communities. While Canada has constitutionally affirmed aspects of reproductive liberation, it also has a colonial history of reproductive oppression and practices ongoing carceral policies that criminalize disproportionately Indigenous and racialized people, threatening their access to reproductive justice. This illustrated, accessible book will tell the empowering stories behind the struggles for reproductive justice in Canada, celebrating past wins and revealing an abolitionist path forward."--

Book Synopsis

The history of abortion decriminalization and critical advocacy efforts to improve access in Canada deserve to be better known. Ordinary people persevered to make Canada the most progressive country in the world with respect to abortion care. But while abortion access is poorly understood, so too are the persistent threats to reproductive justice in this country: sexual violence, gun violence, homophobia and transphobia, criminalization of sex work, reproductive oppression of Indigenous women and girls, privatization of fertility health services, and the racism and colonialism of policing and the prison system. This beautifully illustrated book tells the empowering true stories behind the struggles for reproductive justice in Canada, celebrating past wins and revealing how prison abolitionism is key to the path forward.

Review Quotes

"In Abortion to Abolition, Martha Paynter unflinchingly names the carceral state as the foremost threat to reproductive justice in so-called Canada. Paynter takes great care to experiences of carceral maternity, demonstrating that incarceration (particularly of Indigenous women) enables the continued separation of parents from their children, a fundamental design element in any colonial project. After decades of frontline nursing and advocacy, Paynter deftly illuminates that fight for reproductive justice doesn't end with abortion access and must include the fight to abolish the violence of prisons."--Meenakshi Mannoe, Vancouver Prison Justice Day Committee, Pivot Legal Society

"This critical reading offers insight into Canadian histories of reproductive health access and the manifold violence of Canada's carceral system, while communicating the vital hope embedded in politics and action at the intersection of reproductive justice and abolition."--Dr. Catherine Bryan, Dalhousie University

The U.S. Supreme Court's horrific overturning of the landmark decision Roe v. Wade should not lead to a haughty defence of the state of reproductive rights in Canada. Instead, it should lead to the opposite: A radical investigation into every way Canada fails to achieve reproductive justice for any and all peoples, which is precisely what Abortion to Abolition does.--Maya Campo "Spring Mag"

About the Author

Martha Paynter is a registered nurse providing abortion and postpartum care in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The founder and chair of Wellness Within: An Organization for Health and Justice, and a doctoral candidate at the Dalhousie University School of Nursing, Martha has 20 years of experience working to advance gender health equity. Her practice, teaching and research focus on the intersection of reproductive health and the justice system. A frequent contributor to Briarpatch, CBC, the Coast, the Conversation, the Halifax Examiner, and Saltwire, Martha writes about publicly-funded health care, prison abolition, and gender equity.