Health practices of domination and exclusion: views of activists, professionals and researchers on the situation of forced sterilization of women and girls with disabilities in Spain

Abstract

In 2017, the United Nations declared that 38 countries, including Spain, continued to practice forced sterilizations on women and girls with disabilities, despite it being a practice widely condemned by various international human rights organizations. This study analyzed the situation of this practice in Spain, from the perspective of activists, professionals and researchers with experiences related to this group. The methodology used was qualitative, based on Constructivist Grounded Theory. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were applied to 22 informants, representing 6 autonomous communities of the country. The participants identified a model of health practices of domination and exclusion, where the sexuality and reproduction of women with disabilities has been the object of expropriation, alienation and contempt by systems, structures and differentiated policies, with little transfer of the global framework of human rights to their reality. Sexual violence has gone unnoticed, becoming naturalized by the environment, and has promoted mechanisms of social exclusion and health inequities, depriving them of their fundamental human rights. As it is a situation that is replicated in various parts of the world, it should be considered an issue of relevance for international public health.