Banned

Right now in the US, there is a GAS BOOM. A liquified natural gas boom — or LNG. The US produces the most LNG in the world. And the epicenter of this massive expansion? It’s here on the Gulf Coast.

For the last year, we’ve traversed Louisiana trying to uncover what this growing LNG industry means for the state. But, after talking with everyone – from shrimpers to energy insiders – we realized that the stakes were far bigger. If we really wanted to tell the whole story, we had to travel even farther. In this 3-part series, we follow the journey of American gas around the world to find out if LNG is the miracle fuel it’s claimed to be. If it really can prevent a climate apocalypse. Or is it a carbon bomb waiting to go off?

In part one, we start in Louisiana — ground zero. We see how the rise of these massive export terminals has transformed one community. Is this big bet on LNG worth it?

“All Gassed Up” is a special 3-part series from Sea Change. This special series is part of the Pulitzer Center’s nationwide Connected Coastlines reporting initiative. For more information, go to pulitzercenter.org/connected-coastlines.

This episode was hosted, reported, and produced by Carlyle Calhoun and Halle Parker. It was edited by Morgan Springer, Rosemary Westwood, and Eve Abrams. Additional help was provided by Ryan Vasquez and Eva Tesfaye. The episode was fact-checked by Garrett Hazelwood. Our sound designer is Emily Jankowski. Our theme music is by Jon Batiste.

ABOUT SEA CHANGE:

Living on the coast means living on the front lines of a rapidly changing planet. And as climate change transforms our coasts, that will transform our world.

Every two weeks, we bring you stories that illuminate, inspire, and sometimes enrage, as we dive deep into the environmental issues facing coastal communities on the Gulf Coast and beyond. We have a lot to save, and we have a lot of solutions. It’s time to talk about a Sea Change.

Sea Change is a WWNO and WRKF production. We are part of the NPR Podcast Network and distributed by PRX. Our managing producer is Carlyle Calhoun. Hosted by Carlyle Calhoun and Halle Parker. Our theme song is by Jon Batiste To see more of our reporting on LNG and find other episodes, visit WWNO.org/podcast/sea-change. And to help others find our podcast, hit subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and don’t forget to rate and review!

Banned: One Year Later. It’s been a tumultuous year. A year of massive destabilization in abortion and pregnancy care. In the lives of women and families. And the chaos is ongoing. As of June, 14 states now ban nearly all abortions. To mark one year without Roe v. Wade, host Rosemary Westwood takes us back to Mississippi in a special episode of this award-winning podcast. To look at what life has been like for the people in Banned, how Mississippians are still getting abortions, and what comes next.

BONUS EP – The Last Days of the Pink House. Mississippi’s only abortion clinic scrambles in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. In this bonus episode of Banned, Rosemary follows the scene at the Jackson Women’s Health Organization and looks ahead at what’s to come.

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EP 7 – Mississippi. Anti-abortion activists in Mississippi are anticipating a historic victory. What will Mississippi look like if abortions are banned? How will the state respond to thousands more pregnant women and thousands more babies born every year? And what will become of the Pink House?

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EP 6 – The Loophole. There are three choices before the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. The most likey? Overturning Roe v. Wade. So what will the country look like? And what happens when you can flout an abortion ban simply by using the mail? 

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EP 5 – The Court. A single footnote set the stage for a showdown over Roe v. Wade in Washington, D.C. That showdown begins on the morning of Dec. 1, 2021, in Washington, D.C. The day Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban is finally heard in the Supreme Court of the United States. Religion is everywhere – and nowhere – on that historic day at the Supreme Court.  

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EP 4 – The Strategists. Abortion rights activists have been warning for years that it’s only a matter of time before the battle over Roe v. Wade is lost. We follow how the 15-week ban moved through the federal courts and arrived at the U.S. Supreme Court with perfect timing, thanks to the persistence of anti-abortion activists, a bit of luck, and the failures of the abortion rights movement.

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EP 3 – The Providers. Abortion access in Mississippi has been hanging on by a thread — actually a clinic — for twenty years. That’s thanks to a very small group of people keeping the doors open at the Pink House. What drives them to work here? And what do they risk?

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EP 2 – The Pink House. There is only one clinic you can go to in Mississippi to get an abortion. We go inside Jackson Women’s Health Organization, dubbed the Pink House, the clinic suing Mississippi over its 15-week ban. Women drive for hours from across the South to get to the Pink House. So what does it take for women to get an abortion there?

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EP 1 – A Mississippi Law. In 2018, the governor of Mississippi signs into law the most extreme abortion ban at the time, banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. It was a long shot, a law destined to be shot down by federal courts. Because under 50 years of U.S. Supreme Court rulings, Mississippi’s abortion law was clearly unconstitutional. So why bother?

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