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A recent television broadcast in Argentina showed a remarkable scene that highlights the inroads made by Argentine abortion rights activists in the last few years. 1 Fifty or so legislators across gender and party lines endorsed a bill to legalize abortion, with a number of them participating in a 2012 press conference announcing the initiative. 2 Bright green campaign symbols stood out in the packed room, most notably on a large banner and the kerchiefs that activists wore around their necks; they were the symbols of a broad coalition that spear headed the bill, the Campaña Nacional por el Derecho al Aborto Legal, Seguro y Gratuito (National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe, and Free Abortion). 3 Perhaps most surprising of all was that legisla tors, and not only activists, made these symbols their own by don ning the green scarves.

To fully makesense of this scene, it is necessary to frame it in a broader historical …