Reproductive rights (also Procreative liberty) refers to human rights in areas of sexual reproduction, including the rights to reproduce (such as opposition to forced sterilization) as well as rights not to reproduce (such as support for access to birth control and abortion), the right to privacy, medical coverage, right to contraception, family planning and protection from discrimination and harassment. Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... Sexual reproduction is a type of reproduction that results in increasing genetic diversity of the offspring. ... Compulsory sterilization programs sprouted up in many countries at the beginning of the 20th century, usually as part of a program of negative eugenics -- to prevent undesirable members of the population from reproducing. ... Birth control is a regimen of one or more actions, devices, or medications followed in order to deliberately prevent or reduce the likelihood of a woman becoming pregnant or giving birth. ...

"Reproductive rights” is largely perceived as being synonymous with the “pro-choice” position, which states that abortion should be a legal option for any pregnant woman. Reproductive rights are understood as encompassing more than just abortion, however. Members of the reproductive rights movement also believe that reproductive rights are human rights, and as such men and women should be granted affordable access to contraception, as well as education about contraception and sexually transmitted infections, and freedom from coerced sterilization and contraception. Pro-choice activists on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court, to rally for abortion rights on the anniversary of Roe v. ... Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) — also known as sexually transmissible diseases, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) or (infrequently) venereal diseases (VD) or social disease — are diseases or infections that have a significant probability of transmission between humans by means of sexual contact, vaginal intercourse, oral sex, and/or anal sex. ...

Supporters of reproductive rights often take the position that such principles fall within the context of the right to privacy, or freedom from governmental interference, supporting legalized contraception and abortion. Some advocates also favor the term because they embrace a basic human rights moral justification for their position. The right to privacy is a purported human right and an element of various legal traditions which may restrain both government and private party action. ... Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ...

In the United States Constitution, the right to privacy has been interpreted to include reproductive rights, as seen in such Supreme Court cases as Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), which legalized contraception for married people, and Roe v. Wade (1973), which legalized abortion on a federal level. The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States... Holding A Connecticut law criminalizing the use of contraceptives violated the right to marital privacy. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... Holding Texas laws criminalizing abortion violated womens Fourteenth Amendment right to choose whether to continue a pregnancy. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ...

The term procreative liberty was coined by John A. Robertson, a professor of law and bioethics at the University of Texas School of Law. John A. Robertson holds the Vinson and Elkins Chair at the University of Texas School of Law at Austin. ... Weighing scales represent the way law balances peoples interests For other senses of this word, see Law (disambiguation). ... Bioethics is the ethics of biological science and medicine. ... The University of Texas School of Law is an ABA-certified American law school located on the campus of The University of Texas at Austin. ...

See also

• Procreative beneficence
• Parental leave
• Bioethics
• Reprogenetics

Procreative beneficence is a term refering to the moral obligation of parents to have the healthiest children. ... For the Lost episode Maternity Leave, see Maternity Leave (Lost). ... Bioethics is the ethics of biological science and medicine. ... Reprogenetics is a term referring to the merging of reproductive and genetic technologies expected to happen in the near future as techniques like preimplantation genetic diagnosis become more available and more powerful. ...

External links

• The League of Women Voters on Reproductive Choice

• UNFPA Population Issues: Reproductive Rights
• NARAL Pro-Choice America
• Planned Parenthood