Să umplem casele de copii! Campaniile pronataliste şi scrisorile-invitaţie, 1966-1974 (Let’s fill our homes with children! Pronatalist campaign and letters of invitation. 1966-1974)

Abstract

At the middle of the 1960s, communist Romania changed its demographic policy through special legislation which limited the numbers of abortions and divorces. Explained as consequence of economic and demographic conditions at that time, this legislation meant brutal intrusion by the communist power into the private life of its citizens. Romanian society had different reactions to this new regulations. According to official propaganda, many people agreed with the politics of the party concerning the birth rate and expressed their support by inviting Nicolae Ceausescu to attend weddings and baptism festivities. Behind the propaganda, the economic and social realities were different, many families being forced to live in difficult conditions. The main problems claimed by those who criticized the anti-abortion legislation were the deficiency of living spaces, the shortage of food, the high prices for goods and precarious medical aid. In time, the effects of anti-abortion legislation were disastrous for Romanian society and the propaganda apparatus was not interested in proving popular enthusiasm through letters of invitation, which explains their disappearance from the archives by the middle of the 1970s.

Keywords

• The Abortion Law
• Letters of invitation
• Ceausescu's regime
• reproductive policies
• Pronatalist campaign
• Pronatalist state intervention