This conference was initiated in Canada at the University of Prince Edward Island and has since then been hosted by Ulster University, Northern Ireland, and Rhodes University, South Africa. As the name and the hosting suggest, this conference aims to bring together academicians and activists and provide a forum for shared learning and strategizing as well as networking on the issues of abortion and reproductive justice.  

Reproductive Justice is a theory and framework created by 12 Black women in 1994 to address the multitude of oppressions impacting their lives, and how they intersect and overlap. Intersectionality is a term coined by attorney Kimberle’ Crenshaw which states that people have different life experiences and opportunities based on how identity categories, such as race, class, gender, and sexuality, interact with each other. Reproductive justice explains how people oppressed by their intersectional identities also experience higher levels of reproductive oppression. This means that it is often harder for oppressed people to access healthcare because of factors such as education, income, geographic location, immigration status, and potential language barriers. Although created by Black women, the reproductive justice framework is global and has been evolved by other women of color.