The Word: A Global History of the Abortion Struggle

The A Word provides a feminist perspective on the history of abortion, working to end the taboos that surround this procedure--and the word itself.
The A Word champions the women advocating for free and legal access to the seventy-three million abortions performed around the world every year, more than half of which require women to resort to underground procedures that put their lives at risk. This global history defines the term and the practice of abortion as it exists today and tells the stories of women all over the world engaged in the fight to take back control of their bodies.

From the Indigenous use of abortive plants before colonization to the complicated legacy of Margaret Sanger, to modern advocates like Maria Antonieta Alcalde Castro, Wendy Davis, and Simone Veil, the book shines a light on pivotal moments and figures of the abortion struggle and asks: Why do poor women fare worse when trying to access abortion? How was abortion criminalized? Who profits from its illegality?

The A Word reflects on how the struggle for reproductive justice became a movement that has defined our time. It is a fight that has united feminists across continents and decades to secure safe access to a choice that recent history has shown we cannot take for granted.

Elizabeth Casillas is the founder of Cactus Magazine and the author of Todas nosotras [All of Us] and La palabra que empieza por A [The A Word from URP, 2025, and Le mot en A de Steinkis Editions, 2023]. She holds a BA in Journalism from the Universidad del País Vasco.
Higinia Garay is an illustrator, graphic designer, and professor in graduate programs and workshops. She is the illustrator of the graphic novel Todas nosotras [All of Us] and La palabra que empieza por A [The A Word from URP, 2025, and Le mot en A de Steinkis Editions, 2023]. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and postgraduate degree in Publication Design from the Instituto Europeo de Diseño in Madrid.
Karen Raymer Simon is a literary translator from French and Spanish to English. She taught translation and French at both McGill and Concordia universities in Montreal for more than thirty years. Karen holds a Ph.D. in French literature and is a member of the Literary Translators’ Association of Canada. A number of her books, both fiction and non-fiction, have been published throughout her career.