LEGABO – Doing Research on Abortion

LEGABO – Doing Research on Abortion

A morning of shared ideas with Christabelle Sethna

On 12 May 2025, the first workshop of the research project LEGABO – Abortion Trials in Democratic Spain: Reproductive Rights, Material Cultures, and Legal Cultures of Abortion (1970s–2000s) took place. The project is funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the European Union.

The event brought together the LEGABO research team along with PhD candidates and guest researchers to share progress, methodologies, and research approaches.

The session focused on the intervention of historian Christabelle Sethna, professor at the Institute of Feminist and Gender Studies at the University of Ottawa, and a member of the LEGABO team. She presented her current research on the evolution of abortion law in Canada, the journeys of women seeking access to abortion, and the construction of the archive as a political and affective space.

Beyond the richness of the content, the workshop stood out for its warmth, openness, and collaborative tone throughout the day. Sethna not only shared her research but also the way she conducts it, sparking methodological and personal reflections on how we engage with our sources. The atmosphere was particularly enriching when the PhD candidates from the Department of History of Science presented their projects, exchanging ideas and feedback in a space of mutual listening and constructive critique.

For a more personal and reflective chronicle of the event, we invite you to read the beautiful text by Sergio Castro Cortacero: