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As the U.S. Supreme Court reversed half a century of jurisprudence in Dobbs, rejecting a fundamental right to abortion, courts across Latin America have made progress in the opposite direction. A so-called “Green Wave” has swept across some of the most populous countries in a region that was formerly known for having the most restrictive abortion laws. In 2021, the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that complete criminalization of abortion was unconstitutional, triggering changes in state laws and regulation of abortion throughout much of the country. In 2022, the Constitutional Court of Colombia decriminalized abortion until 24 weeks of gestation, with further exceptions to criminalization thereafter.
This event will situate these landmark decisions in the historical trajectories of the respective Courts’ jurisprudence. The discussion will explore the role of differing constitutional frameworks and approaches to constitutional interpretation, as well as regional dynamics and the impacts of evolving understandings of abortion rights under international law.