Reproductive Healthcare, Religion, and Inequality in Brazil and Beyond: A Conversation with Cassia Roth

Then & Now

The topic of reproductive healthcare and access to abortion has emerged as a pivotal point in the weeks and months leading up to the 2024 presidential election in the U.S. In this week's episode of then & now, our guest interviewer Professor Elizabeth O’Brien speaks with Professor Cassia Roth, a historian of Society, Environment, and Health Equity at the University of California, Riverside. Roth’s recent book, A Miscarriage of Justice, explores the intersection of reproductive health and legal policy in early 20th-century Brazil. Drawing from her research, Roth highlights parallels between Brazil and the U.S., noting how both countries are undergoing complex shifts in reproductive rights shaped by political and religious landscapes. While some areas of Latin America have seen significant progress toward decriminalizing abortion in recent decades, other countries in the region have imposed increasingly restrictive reproductive policies, underscoring the diversity of legal landscapes across Latin America. The conversation stresses the importance of understanding historical context, such as the role of military regimes and social inequalities, in shaping current reproductive policies. Roth calls for inclusive policies that address the needs of marginalized communities while navigating the ongoing back-and-forth nature of reproductive legislation.

Elizabeth O’Brien is an Assistant Professor in the UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Department of History, specializing in the history of reproductive health in Mexico. Professor O’Brien is also a member of the cross-field group in the History of Gender and Sexuality. Professor O’Brien's 2023 book on colonialism and reproductive healthcare in Mexico, Surgery and Salvation, received the 2024 Best Book Award from the Nineteenth-Century Section of the Latin American Studies Association.

Cassia Roth is an Associate Professor in the Department of Society, Environment, and Health Equity at UC Riverside. Professor Roth is a leading expert in women’s reproductive health in Brazil and her acclaimed book, A Miscarriage of Justice, was published by Stanford University Press in 2020. Professor Roth is currently working on a project entitled Birthing Abolition: Enslaved Women’s Reproduction and the Gradual End of Slavery in 19th-century Brazil.