BELFAST — It was one of the warmest days of the year, and Ciara was wearing a T-shirt to try to blend in with the vacationers at Belfast airport. But as soon as she boarded her flight to London, she noticed people staring at the dark purple bruises on her arm and the baby bump that stretched the fabric of her shirt.

“I’m sure some of it was paranoia, but I could tell from the way some folks looked at me that they figured out I was traveling for an abortion,” she said. Ciara, who is 32 and has two children, has asked to be identified in this article only by a childhood nickname, to protect her from her abusive former partner, who she said had threatened to kill her if she terminated the pregnancy.

While Ireland voted to legalize abortion last year, Northern Ireland — which is part of the United Kingdom — has shown no signs of liberalizing its draconian laws, allowing the procedure only when the mother’s life is in danger.

That has led many women, like Ciara, to travel for abortions, something that can be difficult for those who lack the resources to finance the trip. With some states in the United States — most recently Alabama — passing legislation that mirrors the laws in Northern Ireland, many American women could be just a Supreme Court decision away from finding themselves in a similar position.