Compulsory motherhood for white and black women: the non-compliance with Goal 5.6 of the 2030 Agenda in Brazil

Abstract

This article analyzes the different ways in which compulsory motherhood is imposed on white and Black women in Brazil, examining how these impositions produce gender and racial inequalities that hinder the fulfillment of Goal 5.6 of the UN 2030 Agenda, which aims to ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and the full autonomy of women over their bodies. The research adopts a deductive, qualitative, and intersectional method, based on normative, bibliographic, and critical analysis of secondary data, seeking to understand the multiple layers of oppression that sustain the naturalization of motherhood as a female social destiny. To this end, it investigates how the discourse of compulsory motherhood manifests differently between white and Black women: for the former, the imposition operates as a moral expectation and ideal of fulfillment; for the latter, as an instrument of control, blame, and exclusion, reproducing colonial and racist stigmas. Through critical analysis of normative frameworks, public policies, and specialized literature, it becomes evident that the structural barriers to the exercise of bodily and reproductive autonomy reveal the implementation deficit of the 2030 Agenda in Brazil, especially concerning the goals of gender equality, health, and reproductive rights. It concludes that confronting compulsory motherhood requires the effective mainstreaming of gender and race in state policies, recognizing the specificities of women’s experiences and ensuring real conditions for the exercise of reproductive freedom and full citizenship.