Conservative Backlash in Europe: the networks behind

Date: Thursday 14th March
Time:16:00-18:00
Place: Bergen Global, Jekteviksbakken 31

In recent years, Europe has seen strong conservative mobilization against abortion, LGBT-rights and child protection services. Through the Internet, intensive lobbying and funding from abroad, these movements are gaining new ground – is the seemingly well-established right of abortion under threat in Europe? What are the driving forces behind this mobilization and is there a conservative network driving the movements?

In this seminar we will screen the documentary “Abortion: Backlash in Europe” which focuses on the European pro-life movements and the methods and arguments that these groups use. The screening will be followed by a conversation between Neil Datta, Barbara Ruiken and Siri Gloppen, in which they explore the links between the networks driving anti-abortion, anti-LGBT and anti-child protection service mobilization.

 

Neil Datta is the Secretary of the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development, a network of parliamentarians from across Europe who are committed to protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights. He has nearly twenty years’ experience in the field of political involvement in population and development, and has conducted in-depth research on anti-choice activity in Europe. He is part of the LawTransform based research project on Sexual and Reproductive Rights Lawfare: Global Battles.

Barbara Ruiken is a scientific assistant at the Centre for Research on Discretion and Paternalism at the Department of Administration and Organisation Theory. She holds a master’s degree in Administration and Organisation Theory and works mainly on the projects Discretion and the Child’s Best Interest and The Acceptability of Child Protection Interventions.

Siri Gloppen is the Director of LawTransform and professor of Comparative Politics (UiB). She heads the research projects (supported by the Norwegian Research Council) on Sexual and Reproductive Rights Lawfare: Global Battles; and Political Determinants of Sexual and Reproductive Health, where the conservative networks and their influence in different parts of the world is part of the dynamics under study.

 

The event is free and open to all! Coffee and snacks will be served.

To read more about the documentary, visit: http://www.newendistribution.com/en/program/abortion-backlash-in-europe/