The green scarf ( es, pañuelo verde, links=no) is a symbol of the

abortion-rights movements Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

, created in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

in 2003 and popularized since 2018 throughout

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

and then in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 2022. It is inspired by the white scarves worn by the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo.

Origins

The green scarf, as a symbol, was born in 2003 during the XVIII National Meeting of Women in

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous ci ...

, Argentina. For the first time, the right to abortion was one of the main demands and green scarves were used during the closing march. Two years later, in 2005, the National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe and Free Abortion was born, and the green scarf was adopted to represent the movement. It was used for years by the activists who marched, in spite of the indifference of the population and the media. The green scarf is also a reference to the white scarves worn by the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. The color green was chosen because it represents hope and because it was not associated with any social or political movement in Argentina. According to one of the participants of the XVIII National Meeting of Women, there was also a pragmatic reason: they wanted to distribute scarves but they did not find enough purple fabric, the color of

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, however there was enough green available. The green tone used is located between 347 C and 3415 C by

Pantone Pantone LLC (stylized as PANTONE) is a limited liability company headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey. The company is best known for its Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color space used in a variety of industries, notably graphic ...

. Until 2018, in textile stores in Buenos Aires, it was known as "green Benetton". Then it changed to be known as "legal abortion green". The green scarf bears the legend "

Sex education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual acti ...

to decide,

contraceptives Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

to avoid abortion, legal abortion to avoid death".

Popularization

The scarf gradually became more popular, being used in particular during the Ni una menos marches and achieving notoriety in the public space since 2017, after the #MeToo movement, with the march "A global cry for legal abortion" that took place on 28 September of that year, having wide coverage by the media, who spoke of a "green tide". The green scarf is worn around the neck, on the wrist, or on backpacks and handbags. Celebrities wear it and recently the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo have incorporated it and usually carry it during their weekly marches. Until 2018, the National Campaign for the Right to Legal Abortion distributed approximately 8,000 scarves per year, but in 2018 more than 200,000 were distributed. In reaction, the Argentine

anti-abortion movement Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

created a light blue scarf, "in favor of the two lives".

Internationalization

The symbol crossed borders from 2018 and was used in other

n countries that fought for the right to abortion. In

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, for example, the green scarf was used as of 2018, with the messages "Open-access to free and safe abortion" and "#NoBastan3Causales" ("three causes are not enough", referring to the fact that abortion in Chile is only legal in cases of life-threatening risk to the mother, non-viable

fetus A fetus or foetus (; plural fetuses, feti, foetuses, or foeti) is the unborn offspring that develops from an animal embryo. Following embryonic development the fetal stage of development takes place. In human prenatal development, fetal deve ...

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

). Since September 2020, the green scarf was also the icon of the Causa Justa Movement in Colombia. This movement filed a lawsuit before the Constitutional Court of that country to eliminate abortion from the penal code. The lawsuit was decided in February 2022 and succeeded in eliminating the crime of abortion up to 24 weeks of gestation. In May 2022, the green scarf was also used in the United States during the marches in defense of the right to abortion, threatened by a possible overturn of ''

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and st ...

'' decision. In June 2022, after the supreme court overturned ''Roe v. Wade'' with the ''

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ''Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization'', , is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the court held that the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion. The court's decision overruled both ''R ...

'' ruling, protests broke out in many cities in the United States, with some protestors using green scarves with the inscriptions "RiseUp4AbortionRights" and "Green4Abortion".

Prohibitions

Although there is no law that bans the use of the green scarf in Argentina, many private institutions (and even some state-run schools) have decided to ban its use and display. Human rights organizations have stood against these prohibitions, stating that they are unconstitutional and a violation of the right to self-expression.

References

{{Reflist Abortion-rights movement Political symbols