Abortion Policies In The Soviet Union Essay

Abortion Policies in the Soviet Union In the 1400s when Russia was known as the Russian Empire, abortion was a crime punishable by hard labor, exile, and even death.1 However, Russia’s abortion policies have transformed greatly since then. From the legalization of abortion in 1920 to the abortion ban in 1936 to its re-legalization in 1955, the Soviet Union’s abortion policies have fluctuated greatly. Each Soviet leader has had their own opinion on abortion policies, and those opinions have largely impacted the transformation of abortion policies in the Soviet Union. Keeping in mind the general theme of legalization and criminalization of abortion, how did the Soviet Union’s abortion policies transform over time and how did they correlate with

This resulted from a variety of factors, including declining birth rates and Stalin’s beliefs about the importance of motherhood. Stalin stated that giving birth was an “honorable duty … of great social importance”, publically encouraging Soviet women to embrace motherhood and increase Soviet birth rates.2 This decision to outlaw abortions stemmed from ideological factors rather than social conditions.3 When abortion was legalized in 1920, Lenin and the Bolsheviks had clearly examined social factors such as economic instability and general societal unrest before legalizing abortion. However, when Stalin abolished the practice of legal abortions in 1936, his decision did not seem to correlate with societal factors. Societal disparities and poor living conditions did not alter his decision. Rather, an idealistic perspective that came from ignoring social factors at the time motivated his decision. Stalin’s views on abortion policies were also representative of himself as a dictator. His want to control women’s abortions definitely related to his strict and controlling dictatorship, which characterized this entire time