Who would have thought that a Supreme Court ruling in the United States could trigger a constitutional amendment in France? After all, there is zero threat here to a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy, a right that has been on the books since 1975. Earlier this month we saw blowback in the US to that June decision by the high bench in Washington, with midterm election results pointing to record mobilisation by young people. For them, women's rights were on the ballot.
Is France artificially importing an American argument, or is there more to the shock felt on this side of the Atlantic? We ask about duelling versions of that amendment to the French constitution. Also in focus is France's often overlooked upper chamber – the Senate – more conservative, less powerful than the National Assembly but in this instance powerful enough to scuttle the plan. Why is that?
