In 2018, in a culturally and historically significant move, the Irish public voted in favor of overturning the country's long-held ban on abortion, with more than 66% supporting the repeal. This victory for improving access to healthcare for millions was by no means an overnight success, however.

On the contrary, the fight to legalize abortion in Ireland was a long and arduous one. The procedure was first criminalized in 1861 with the Offences Against the Person Act, which forbid women from seeking to "procure a miscarriage." This law would see a sentence of life imprisonment handed to anyone who had or provided an abortion, or helped to provide access to one in any way.

In 1983, the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland came into effect. It protected "the right to life of the unborn." This effectively banned abortion under any circumstances, even when there was a direct threat to life for either the expectant mother or the unborn fetus.

Even now, following the ...