The Green Tide

‘‘Over forty years ago, a white handkerchief on the head became a symbol for the Madres de Plaza de Mayo, who still to this day march weekly to demand justice for the disappeared children during the Argentinian coup. Today, a green handkerchief has become the symbol of the fight for abortion rights in Latin America.

La Ola Verde (''The Green Tide'') refers to women of all ages and backgrounds all over Argentina and Latin America wearing a green handkerchief on a day to day basis to visibilise the movement that demands the decriminalisation of abortion. Campaigners have been demanding this for decades, with the slogan ''Sexual education to decide, contraceptives to not abort, legal abortion to not die'', but it was with the rise of the Ni Una Menos movement that the campaign grew exponentially and reached all areas of society. As antiabortion movements are still prevalent, wearing the green handkerchief in public demands courage, since they have been banned from many schools and workplaces and people wearing them risk getting harrassed in public spaces.

Despite abortion becoming decriminalised in Argentina in December 2020, the green handkerchief is still worn in public as it has become a symbol of unity, with many women and gender non confirming people stating they feel safer in public spaces if they see someone wearing the green handkerchief near them.’’