The Right to Understand and the Linguistic Discrimination. The Case of Italian Law on Abortion

Abstract

Abstract: In the present days, discrimination shows itself under different shapes. One of the most important rights is to understand laws, in order to have a free and complete access to our civil rights. In this paper, I will explore the case of Italian law language, taking the law n. 194, May 22, 1978 about abortion as an example of miscommunication between the Government and the female citizens.

At the beginning, I will analyze some datas about abortion in Italy. Then, I will show what are the main difficulties and the obstacles in law language. I also will attempt to offer a concrete solution to the problem, by creating a new communicative text beside the original law. In this, I will take inspiration by the European Union’s efforts of inclusion.

In the end, I will reflect on the role that jurists and linguists play in the solution of this problem.

Keywords: legal language, discrimination, abortion, rights, text comprehension.