Strategies within and against resistance : A case study of pro-choice advocates’ strategies to pursue a progressive abortion law in Poland in relation to their oppositional forces

Abstract: Although there is a growing international consensus of adopting progressive abortion laws, we also see a backlash of reproductive health regulation across the globe, for example in Poland. In contrast to the existing literature on abortion in Poland, this thesis explores pro-choice advocates’ strategies in relation to their oppositional forces. To do so, pro-choice activities surrounding the near-total ban of abortion in 2020 and 2021 are studied through interpretative content analysis of pro-choice advocates’ websites, one Annual Report, and interviews with pro-choice advocates. Using previous research on how to capture resistance and well-grounded concept deriving from social movement theory, this study establishes how the strategies of pro- choice advocates are affected by their oppositional forces. The analysis showcases that the pro- choice advocates perceive Poland as a hub for far-right and conservative groups, and establishes that they are aware of the resistance they meet, including their maneuver possibilities and limitations in the political and institutional context. Pro-choice advocates need to expand their services and use alternative strategies to circumvent oppositional forces’ actions and power. Due to the due to the impact of oppositional forces, the resources of rest, good relationships within one’s group, and the networks of these groups, i.e., the emotional dynamics of their strategies, to be crucial. Correspondingly, due to the oppositional forces’ actions, smaller pro-choice groups are found to a greater extent using reactive tactics than proactive. The dynamics of power, including the institutional context, are in favor of pro-choice advocates’ oppositional forces, however, this thesis also acknowledges how innovative and problem-solving pro-choice advocates are, although being led down by their government and the society in which they work. As such, this study brings valuable insights to supplement the existing theoretical knowledge concerning feminist movements’ resistance and oppositional dynamics in a case of gender-inequitable change.