Eugenics in the theory of justice: the tension between individual freedom and the abortion of foetuses with microcephaly

Abstract

One of the greatest recent concerns of pregnant women has been the expectation of knowing if their child has been affected by the microcephaly outbreak in Brazil and much of Latin America since late 2015. Unlike other malformations, such as anencephaly, microcephaly does not prevent live birth or reduce life expectancy, but it can cause physical and mental disabilities, which raise concerns about termination
of pregnancy, in which case it can be considered a form of eugenics. In view of the above, the text verifies whether there is eugenics and to which case it belongs; subsequently, there is an analysis, from the perspective of political justice, of authors subscribed to neokantism, especially Jürgen Habermas and John Rawls. In order to answer the inquiries, the deductive method was used, by means of bibliographic
research. It was concluded that the foundation of maximization of freedoms can be a moral impediment in the abortive conduct of microcephalic fetuses, as long as the eugenic end is merely and verifiably utilitarian.