Chemical Abortion in Italy

In Italy, the “traditional” form of family revaluated by fascist dogma is one of the pillars of the society. Women have a central role to maintain, protect and support this form of family. Many Italian women, the State, the media and the Church, all act to safeguard this reality, seeking to remove all obstacles that can challenge the family. Abortion is considered as one of these obstacles and it has been a much debated topic in Italy over the years. Abortion was made legal in Italy in 1978 with a widely discussed law. The Italian Abortion Act, despite being the object of debates, critics and two referenda supported by all Parliamentary factions, has never been modified. In 2002, with the introduction of RU 486 at the Sant’Anna of Turin all debates about abortion started up again accompanied by a strong opposition to the implementation of the drug. The purpose of this study is to better understand the social definition of the female condition in Italy analysing the obstacles to the implementation of chemical abortion in Italy. In order to evaluate the role of both the Italian Government and society in obstructing the introduction of RU 486 in Italy, historical and secondary sociological data were collected and a series of interviews and a participant observation in a selection of Italian hospitals were conducted. A comparative study between Italy and the UK was also conducted. The results of this study seem to prove how the majority of Italian women, in opposition to feminist theory, prioritize family, femininity and maternity, considering career as necessary mainly from an economic point of view. Abortion is now considered by the young generation as something avoidable and no longer associated with women’s right to choose or as an expression of “self-determination”. This strong “traditionalistic” attitude seems to be caused by the inability of the Italian State to implement its laws and by the direct and indirect influence of the Catholic Church