Current as at April 2006

In Australia, men's mobilisation around paternity fraud has led to numerous father-favouring changes to family law. Despite this, feminists have been slow to interrogate discrepant paternity discourse. In this paper, I analyse and respond to the empirical and normative assertions contained in the paternity fraud charge.

In this chapter, written with Cait Calcutt (p. 41-70), Leslie analyses, and seeks to draw lessons for contemporary Australian pro-choice activists, of significant legislative changes to abortion laws in Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) in 1998. The chapter is part of a larger collection undertaken in phase one of the Johannesburg Initiative, an international project aimed at building capacity amongst pro-choice advocates.

A recent newspaper report pitted McDonald's and Birrell's explanations for Australia's below-replacement fertility against each other. In this article, Cannold presents data from qualitative research into the experience and understandings of 35 childless women aged 28 to 42.

Leslie's article in the British Journal of Medical Ethics about postmortem or posthumous sperm donation.

Leslie's chapter in the book Ectogenesis: Artificial womb technology and the future of human reproduction published by Rodopi in 2006 is called "Women, ectogenesis and ethical theory". To discuss obtaining a copy of this chapter contact Leslie.

Leslie's chapter on male circumcision appears in Cutting to the Core: Exploring the Ethics of Contested Surgery by Rowman & Littlefield.

Lyndal Dornan may not be a household name, but the way she has chosen to live her life-and to speak proudly and publicly about it-is likely to strike terror in many men's hearts. Dornan had long told friends and family that if she didn't have a partner she would have a baby on her own. When she did conceive one night after purposely 'forgetting' to use contraception, she began decorating the nursery, informing the father that he could be as involved or uninvolved as he wished. Lyndall admits to having a hard time "picture[ing] [her]self in a conventional relationship", and argues that single parenting can often be easier because, when decisions need to be made about her needs or the child's, she doesn't have to consult or defer to someone else.

This paper discusses the rise and use of a 'woman-centred' anti-choice strategy to oppose abortion in Australia and the USA. It argues that this strategy seeks to imitate and exploit aspects of the pro-choice, women-centred position on abortion. The strategy contends that women do not really choose abortion but are pressured into it by others and then experience a range of negative effects afterwards, including an increased risk of breast cancer, infertility and post-abortion grief. Rather than evaluate the truth of such claims, this paper seeks to explicate from a feminist perspective the design, intent and implications of this strategy and how it is being used in legislative tactics, counselling, law suits and anti-choice activism. Such an analysis is necessary for pro-choice efforts to respond effectively to this new strategy, not only through literal rebuttals based on evidence, but also through responses that counter its ideological power.

The Extended Australian Report of the "The Johannesburg Initiative"