Pushing Human Rights Boundaries: Intersectional Discrimination and Reproductive (In)Justice for Romani Women

Over the past few decades, intersectionality has become an increasingly prominent concept. Scholarship on inequalities and (non-)discrimination in both Europe and the United States has, for instance, steadily recognized structural racism and its intersection with other systems of oppression as key underlying causes of discrimination. This chapter explores the concept of intersectional discrimination and its potential for pushing the boundaries of human rights. It analyses the issue of reproductive injustice faced by Romani women in Europe, with a particular focus on cases of involuntary (non-consensual) sterilization in Czechia and Slovakia. Despite the attempts of strategic litigation at pushing the current boundaries constructed by the jurisprudence, the failure of courts to recognize involuntary sterilization amounts to a structural intersectional discrimination practice which is highly problematic. This lack of recognition validates and reinforces traditional systems of subordination, infantilization and marginalization of Romani women, rooted in widespread and legitimized anti-Roma racism. By adopting an intersectional approach, courts and policymakers have the opportunity to reverse this trend, pushing the boundaries of human rights, while promoting equality and social justice.

 

https://academic.oup.com/book/60605/chapter/524380476