Abortions

They have a humble hashtag, #TwoWomenTravel and it has gone viral, speaking out against Irelands strict reproductive laws. “Two women, one procedure, 48 hours away from home.” Is the bio of the @TwoWomenTravel account on twitter. it was created by a pregnant woman and her friend in order to document and publicise their journey to the UK from Ireland to get an abortion.

 

It is illegal to receive an abortion in Ireland unless continuing with the pregnancy supposes a serious risk to the life of the mother. Figures from the Irish Family Planning Association for last year show that 3451 women travelled to the UK for an abortion from ireland. That equates to 9 people per day.   

 

They tweeted photos of parts of their journey; trains, hospitals, beds. They wanted to “share the very ordinariness of the situation – we wanted to show it for what it is; a series of waiting rooms, moments in transit, a sequence of tediums protracted by stigma. No filters, no monologues, just the facts.”

 

The target of the tweets was Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny, who has not commented on the matter. People have shown their support for the women in their tens of thousands including celebrities such as James Corden TV presenter and comedian and Irish journalist Una Mullally.

When the women arrived home after the procedure they tweeted: 

“We had to travel because our government insists that we pretend this isn’t happening … Our journey ends here tonight, but the struggle for our reproductive freedom continues. We hope that the outpouring of public support encourages more women to document their experiences, to highlight the issue, and to stand with us in the battle for control over our own bodies.”