“The author studies the issue of abortion from a constitutional perspective and, in doing so, she initially approaches the issue of secularity and its relationship with the democratic rule of law, which implies the recognition of the plurality and diversity existing in our country. 

Her thesis argues that in the correlation between the fundamental right to life and abortion there is a duty to decriminalize abortion in Brazil and presents four hypotheses: the right to life is not absolute and must be re-signified in the light of the right to life of women; the right to life must be understood in the light of constitutional rights, such as freedom, privacy, autonomy, health and dignity of the human person; the criminalization of abortion is a manifestation of a patriarchal and sexist legal system that aims to control women’s sexuality and bodies; there is a primary criminalization of abortion by the 1940 Penal Code, however, since secondary criminalization is weak, there is no effective protection of the unborn life. 

The contribution of this book to Brazilian critical legal thought is notable, presenting ideas from great jurists such as Dworkin and Ferrajoli; presenting ideas from anthropology, psychology, psychoanalysis, philosophy, law, morality and ethics in an interdisciplinary way.”

Excerpt from the preface to the Brazilian edition, by Silvia Pimentel.