On March 4, France became the first country to protect abortion rights within its constitution, following an overwhelming majority vote by the country’s lawmakers. Though needing only 512 votes in favor to pass, the amendment passed with 780 votes in favor and 72 against.
The decision became officialized in a public sealing ceremony, a tradition reserved only for the laws of most importance, that was held on March 8, International Women’s Day.
Though France had decriminalized abortion since 1975, allowing for the procedure to be conducted through the 14th week of pregnancy, the United States Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022 prompted the French government to seek to solidify the law within its constitution.
President Emmanuel Macron emphasized the profound importance of this decision both domestically and on the global stage, stating, “Today is not the end of the story but the start of a fight. We’re going to lead this fight in our continent, in our Europe, where reactionary forces are attacking women’s rights before attacking the rights of minorities.”
Macron urged other countries to take similar measures in establishing and protecting abortion rights, calling for abortion to be established as a guaranteed freedom within the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Though women have access to abortion in more than 40 countries throughout Europe, there are still a number of territories, such as Poland and Malta, that impose restrictions upon this procedure.
Though in France opposition to abortion remains minimal, the enshrining of the right within the constitution safeguards against potential reversal by far-right administrations, a scenario that occurred within the U.S. As explained by a specialist in French and American constitutional law, Mathilde Philip-Gay, “It may not be an issue in France, where a majority of people support abortion, but those same people may one day vote for a far-right government, and what happened in the U.S. can happen elsewhere in Europe, including in France.”
Though other countries are likely to be inspired by France’s decision to protect the reproductive rights of women, particularly in Europe, it is unlikely the U.S. will take similar actions within their legislations. John Brown University professor of criminal justice Miguel Rivera stated that the complexities associated with amending the U.S. constitution, along with the decision of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, it is highly unlikely such a process would ensue throughout the U.S.
Furthermore, though it has been rumored that a law could be passed by congress that would establish the legal right to abortion under federal law, the current political landscape of the U.S. would likely result in the law being deemed unconstitutional under the Tenth Amendment and, as a result, would possibly be challenged and overturned by the Federal Courts.
“The bottom line is that, in my opinion, given the Dobbs case combined with principles of Federalism in the Tenth Amendment, I think for abortion rights to be the law of the land, it would require a Constitutional Amendment, and such an amendment is very, very unlikely to pass either Congress, with the requisite two thirds majority in each Chamber, and pass by the three fourths approval of each of the fifty States – both steps being required,” Rivera said.
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