Pushing Back and Stretching: Frame Adjustments Among Reproductive Rights Advocates in Peru

Abstract

The article examines how two reproductive rights coalitions in Peru adjust their framing by way of regular interactions with other collective actors. Qualitative data were gathered from the coalitions in the regions of Arequipa and Cusco. The findings demonstrate how the coalitions engage in framing practices not only among their members as they select and refine advocacy goals and strategies, but also by means of interaction, communication, and negotiation with a range of organized social and political actors. Through these interactions, coalition members adjust their framing of reproductive rights in response to what they perceive from other actors, taking frames from them and directing frames back to them. These interactions occur within broader political and cultural contexts consisting of stable and variable opportunity structures. Thus, the coalitions' framing practices entail stretching favorable interpretations among allies and neutral actors, while pushing back the boundaries in which the Catholic Church leadership attempts to transmit its own interpretations.