Think abortion is rare? One in six Canadians has had one, and most have no regrets
The topic of abortion has been at the forefront of the human rights conversation, especially since the overturning of Roe v. Wade in the US in June. But how common is the procedure in Canada? And what does access to it look like?
A new study from Angus Reid has determined that one in six Canadians has had an abortion, and most have no regrets — they believe it was the right call to make.
Comparatively, only 54% of people who went through with an unwanted pregnancy have no regrets about carrying it full-term.
Angus Reid Institute
The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey with a randomized sample of 1,805 Canadian adults, all of whom are members of the Angus Reid forum and were assigned female at birth.
Forty-one per cent said they knew someone — a close friend or family member — who had terminated an unwanted pregnancy, with rural Canada having the highest number of respondents to admit so. Though the ease of access to abortion varied, most respondents said they (or the people they know who’ve had abortions) had no difficulty getting one.
Sixteen per cent said they had an abortion themselves. Of this, 18% voted CPC, 14% Liberal, 16% NDP, 27% Green, and 23% voted for PPC in the 2021 federal elections.
Meanwhile, 21% of respondents said they knew someone who had carried an unwanted pregnancy to full term, with 15% admitting they’d gone through with one themselves.
That said, only a little over half of those who experienced this firsthand kept the baby only (57%); 22% gave up the child for adoption.
Abortion is legal and publicly funded in Canada. In October, the country ranked third in the world for offering the most health freedoms.
Still, Canada has many anti-abortion people in power. Here is a list of all Members of Parliament who are not pro-choice.
For more information about the Angus Red survey, including age, race, and class demographics, gender statistics, and political leaning, check out the institute’s full data here.
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