Irish women yesterday channelled The Handmaid's Tale in their pro-choice protest outside the Republic of Ireland's Dáil Éireann parliament building, the same place that pro-life Tim Jackson was staging his anti-abortion hunger strike.
The women wore the red cloaks and white bonnets made famous by Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel and recent TV series to draw comparisons between Ireland's strict anti-abortion laws and the story's oppression of women and government control over their reproductive rights. They carried banners adorned with the slogan 'abortion rights now!' and used the hashtag #repealthe8th to document the protest on social media. The demonstration was organised by the ROSA (for Reproductive rights, against Oppression, Sexism and Austerity) to show support for the proposed referendum of the Eighth Amendment, which is currently in place to enforce equal right to life of a mother and unborn child, restricting women from having the right to abort unwanted pregnancies.
Tim Jackson, pro-life campaigner and Independent candidate in last year's Irish general election, set up camp outside the parliament building earlier this week to begin his hunger strike protest against the referendum. Jackson wanted to draw attention to his campaign demanding that Irish PM Leo Varadkar and the Oireachtas Committee on Abortion watch a video of an abortion taking place before they proceed with the referendum.
When he was joined by the Handmaid's Tale protesters yesterday, Jackson was on his third day of hunger strike and updated his progress on his
. Jackson wrote, 'Day 3 of hunger strike: All is well, had great support today, people traveled from around country to stand with us (many thanks to them). My own energy is down, but that's ok. One day at a time.'
Jackson previously stated that his hunger strike would not be to the point of death, and that he would drink water.
While the protests and counter-protests continue in Ireland, it has also been reported that 'staggering' amounts of British women are turning to the internet to acquire abortion pills, after facing a multitude of difficulties in accessing abortion clinics. As Jackson begins day 4 without food, men and women all over Britain and Ireland continue to fight for the right to decide what happens to their own bodies and access safe abortion services. One day at a time.
Liked this? You might also like:
British Women Are Ordering Abortion Pills Online Due To Diffulty Accessing Clinics
Abortion In Ireland: Change Is In The Horizon After Committee Recommends Unrestricting Access
Follow Frankie on Twitter @wildisssh
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.