Call for Abstracts: Looking Beyond Roe v. Wade: Seeking Reproductive Justice in the Next 50 Years
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Symposium Issue – Fall 2023
Guest Editors: Professors Nicole Huberfeld, Linda C. McClain, and Aziza Ahmed, Boston University School of Law and School of Public Health
Overview:
It is impossible to overstate the importance of exploring the legacy and future of Roe v. Wade in this moment. If the leaked draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health foreshadows the final decision, the Supreme Court is poised to reverse Roe, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, and related precedents. Many states are limiting or banning abortion in anticipation of this major jurisprudential shift and even attempting to limit residents’ ability to obtain abortion services across state borders. Other states are acting to protect abortion rights and to aid pregnant persons travelling from out-of-state to obtain health care. Calls to “codify Roe” through federal and state law have become even more urgent, while opponents are calling for bans of abortion at every level. Whatever happens when the Court issues a decision in Dobbs, the constitutional, political, and policy landscape will change, with far-reaching implications for law, medicine, and public health. This symposium issue of JLME accompanies a live conference at BU Law that will mark the 50th anniversary of Roe and evaluate the shape of — and many dimensions of— reproductive justice in the next fifty years, including the relationship between reproductive justice and calls for health justice and civil rights of health. The symposium will have a multi-disciplinary approach that will include attention to social movements, legal change, health equity, and reproductive health and justice, including the critical role of advocates in Boston and the Northeast region.
Publication is planned for the Fall 2023 issue of JLME. We will draw papers from this call for abstracts in addition to directed invitations. We anticipate including 10-12 papers as well as an introduction to the issue. Article length will be established after proposals are accepted; we anticipate that articles will range from 10-30 double-spaced pages, including references (JLME uses endnotes, not footnotes).
Abstract Submission:
By July 1, 2022, submit an abstract to all three emails: lmcclain@bu.edu, nlh@bu.edu, and aahmed@law.uci.edu. Please attach the abstract proposal with the file name “[LastName]_[FirstInitial]_JLME_Abstract.docx,” and include in the email this subject line: “Abstract for JLME Looking Beyond Roe.” Abstracts should include a title and be between 250-500 words. Proposals should describe a position or argument, not just name a topic. Be sure to indicate the anticipated length of your proposed paper, which may need to be adjusted once abstracts have been selected. Co-authored submissions, especially from interdisciplinary collaborators, are welcome. Authors need not be lawyers.
Submissions should describe proposed papers that have not been published and are not anticipated to be published elsewhere. Proposals will be assessed primarily on the basis of their originality, relevance, clarity, and potential for scholarly impact. We will also consider how proposed papers complement each other. Accepted authors may be invited to present their work at the Symposium hosted by BU Law and BUSPH on January 26, 2023.
Anticipated Timeline:
July 1, 2022 – abstract proposals due
July 15, 2022 – selected authors notified
Nov. 1, 2022 – articles due to Guest Editors
Nov. 15, 2022 – articles distributed to peer reviewers
January 1, 2023 – articles returned to authors with reviewer’s comments (round 1)
February 1, 2023 – revised articles sent to Guest Editors
Feb. 15, 2023 – additional comments, if any, provided by Guest Editors
April 15, 2023 – Round 2 of edits, if necessary
May 15, 2023 – final articles approved by Guest Editors and sent to JLME
Sept 1, 2023 – publication in print and online
Questions:
Please contact Nicole: nlh@bu.edu, Linda: lmcclain@bu.edu, or Aziza: aahmed@law.uci.edu