Abolition and Reproductive Justice: Addressing Health Care Deprivation in U.S. Prisons

• In Event: Abolitionism and Carcerality: Reflections, Perspectives, and Approaches

Abstract

This paper examines the intersection of abolitionist theory and the lack of reproductive health care in U.S. prisons, highlighting the systemic denial of reproductive rights to incarcerated individuals. It argues that abolition is closely tied to the provision of comprehensive reproductive care. Incarcerated individuals, especially women and transgender people, face significant barriers to accessing reproductive services like contraceptives, abortion, and prenatal care, leading to severe health disparities. The paper connects this issue to the abolition of prisons, challenging the prison industrial complex and its role in maintaining inequality and oppression. It contends that reproductive justice cannot be achieved without dismantling the carceral state, as the denial of reproductive rights is part of the broader systems of control and dehumanization within prisons. Using abolitionist principles, the paper critiques the punitive approach to reproductive health care in prisons and advocates for a shift towards care, autonomy, and justice. Drawing on case studies and legal analysis, it highlights the urgent need for reproductive justice and offers abolitionist strategies to address the violence of healthcare deprivation in carceral settings. Ultimately, it envisions a future where incarcerated individuals have full access to reproductive health care, free from state-imposed control.

Authors

• Nicole McKenna, John Jay College

• Katie Leigh, University of Cincinnati