Primary Submission Category: Race/Ethnicity
Sex-Selective Abortion Bans: Structural Stigma, Xenophobia, and the Birth Outcomes of Asian Immigrants
Authors: Emma Zang
Presenting Author: Emma Zang*
The pro-life movement to restrict abortion access in the United States has achieved significant legislative victories in recent years. However, efforts to prohibit abortions sought based on the fetus’ sex, known as sex-selective abortion bans (SSABs), have attracted little attention in the sociological literature. Advocates of SSABs justify the policy by invoking invidious xenophobic stereotypes about Asian immigrants and their alleged penchant for aborting female babies because of a cultural preference for sons. This paper explores the potential health consequences of such policies. Examining 2005–2019 natality data from the National Vital Statistics System using a triple-difference strategy, we find that SSABs had an adverse effect on Asian immigrant infant birth outcomes—specifically, low birth weight and preterm birth. We argue that the successful enactment of SSABs helped amplify a negative social climate in which anti-Asian-immigrant stereotypes and sentiments became more salient in Asian immigrants’ everyday lives. We advance the concept of structural stigma to argue that social policies can amplify negative health effects for vulnerable minorities by fostering an environment that deepens their stigmatized status.