All faith traditions have diverse opinions and practices on reproductive health, rights, and justice. In fact, the majority of people of faith in the U.S. support access to abortion care. Rev. Katey Zeh, ordained Baptist minister and CEO for the Religious Community for Reproductive Choice (RCRC), sits down to talk with us about the organization’s recent blessings and spiritual support provided at abortion clinics. 

The movement and infrastructure of Christian nationalism coopts Christian language for a political agenda, including one which is anti-abortion; still, individuals in faith groups aren’t a monolith. RCRC visited the Women’s Health Center of West Virginia, which had lost its ability to provide abortion care post-Dobbs. The clinic went just over the border and purchased some medical office space to open the Women’s Health Center of Maryland, where abortion care could be provided. RCRC brought the West Virginia staff to Maryland and performed the blessing on the Maryland clinic. The New York Times shared a story on this blessing in December, 2024. 

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Sexual and reproductive health faced unrelenting attacks this year, and the assault will likely only increase in 2025 under the Trump administration. Susan Rinkunas with the Cut, Jezebel, and Vice, and an independent journalist covering abortion and politics, sits down to look back with us on sexual and reproductive health and rights in 2024 and what we can expect in the coming year. 

2024 was marked by the attempted redefinition of abortion bans by incoming President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, extremists using the exact same playbook to attack both abortion and transgender health and rights, the Alabama Supreme Court case that declared frozen embryos as people, and a host of abortion ballot measures around the country. 2025 is likely to bring a Supreme Court justice retirement, loosening abortion clinic buffer zones, a goal to defund Planned Parenthood, and continued attacks to gender-affirming care and birth control. 

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Human rights are born out of the belief that every individual is equal and deserving of life, dignity, respect, and freedom. States must then deliver on those obligations. But through nominations, harmful policy, and mass confusion, the returning administration has a broad ability to dissolve human rights. Rori Kramer, Director of U.S. Advocacy at the American Jewish World Service, sits down to talk with us about the foundations of human rights and what we can expect from the coming administration.

Human rights were codified via the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with the U.S. as an early champion. When these rights were established, they were indivisible and applied to all humans equally. At present, in some countries, authoritarian governments seek to criminalize democracy and the exercise of human rights. Some of these states are feeling empowered by the U.S. and its direction-- especially as the U.S. plays in outsized role in international human rights standards. In the first Trump administration, the Geneva Consensus Declaration and Commission on Unalienable Rights were used to shift and mold the framework of what human rights really are; those may return.

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The incoming Trump administration won’t just devastate sexual and reproductive health in the United States—the harm will absolutely ripple abroad. Rachel Clement, Senior Director of Government Strategy at PAI, sits down to talk with us about the prospect of global human rights under the incoming administration and potential harmful policy to come.

Already, less than 1% of the U.S. budget goes to foreign assistance. And, under the Trump administration, it’s incredibly likely that UNFPA will be defunded, in tandem with cutting funding in other UN spaces like the WHO, UNESCO, and UN Women. During the last Trump administration, the Geneva Consensus Declaration was created to undermine the United Nations and multilateralism in general, while the Commission on Unalienable Rights, out of the State Department, sought to re-define human rights; these tools and others like them might reemerge. In all, attacks to gender and sexual and reproductive health and rights around the world will be enormous, especially with the probable reintroduction of the expanded Global Gag Rule. 

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A new Supreme Court case, United States v. Skrmetti, will challenge Tennessee’s Senate Bill 1, which prohibits gender-affirming care for transgender minors. Katelyn Burns, columnist for MSNBC, first ever openly trans Capitol Hill Reporter, co-host of the podcast Cancel Me Daddy, and co-founder of the publication the Flytrap, sits down to talk with us about this case and what realities the trans community will face under the new administration.  

Tennessee’s law would ban best practice medical care for trans youth up to 18, require youth being treated to cease care within nine months of the law’s effect, and allow for private right of action against medical providers providing gender-affirming care. This specific case is aimed toward transgender minors but will be used as an entry point to target adult care, too. This is on top of extremely likely increases to attacks to transgender folks’ health and rights under the incoming Trump administration, bolstered already by harmful cabinet nominees. 

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The November election will undoubtedly send sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice (SRHRJ) spiraling. Erin Matson, Co-Founder, President, and CEO of Reproaction, sits down to talk with us about the devastating consequences of a second Trump administration and what actions can be taken now before inauguration day.

Top of mind is the implementation of Project 2025 and the Life at Conception Act, which would institute federal fetal personhood and override state law to act as a federal abortion ban. It would also ban contraception, invitro fertilization (IVF), and fertility treatment. There is also a likelihood that pregnancy criminalization will increase and attacks to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) and the abortion pill, mifepristone, will increase. Mass application of the Comstock Act, a 150-year-old-law that could ban mailing of the abortion pill and the gutting of regulatory agencies are also on the table. There are some protective actions the Biden administration can take before January. You can also find additional ways to take personal action in our Take Action section.

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After the Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, and for many years before, Florida served as an abortion access point for many people in the South. But with changing judicial interpretation of “privacy” in the state, access to abortion in Florida has shifted. Laura Goodhue, Executive Director of Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, sits down to talk with us about the status of abortion access in Florida and the outcome of the state ballot initiative in the November 2024 election. 

After the passage of S.B. 8 in Texas and the overturning of Roe, clinics in the northern area of Florida saw a quadrupled number of patients coming in from out of state seeking care. In May 2024, Florida passed a 6-week abortion ban, which has drastically impacted access for both Floridians and those traveling for abortion care. This year’s ballot initiative was aimed at passing a citizen-led Constitutional amendment clarifying that abortion is a decision to be left to a doctor and patient. It passed by 57%; but the current rule in Florida requires a 60% majority vote for the initiative to pass, so it did not go into effect. Find more information on Florida’s Amendment 4 here.

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Power to Decide, a national nonprofit dedicated to advancing sexual and reproductive wellbeing for all, has launched a new survey initiative called the Youth Reproductive Health Access Survey. It aims to collect annual data on young people’s access to sexual and reproductive health services, with emphasis on contraception and abortion. Riley Steiner, Senior Director, Research and Evaluation at Power to Decide, sits down to talk to us about the survey’s findings—including information gaps, preferences, and service provision related to young people’s access to basic contraceptive care.

The survey’s data is collected online from approximately 1,000 young people ages 15-29, assigned female at birth. Power to Decide collected striking knowledge gaps and notable findings, including that a quarter of respondents indicated that they didn't have enough information to decide whether using birth control was the right thing for them and that a third of respondents indicated that they didn't have enough information to decide which birth control methods are right for them. Because there’s a noted lack of information and access, Power to Decide’s findings show that providers and advocates must think creatively to get young people the care they need. 

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Today is already stressful as is—that’s why we thought it a perfect time for round 6 of our series, SRHR Hero Origin Stories! If you haven’t already, check out our previous episodes, SRHR Hero Origin Stories, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 2, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 3, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 4, and SRHR Origin Stories: Round 5, where we talked to a number of amazing heroes in the field of reproductive health, rights, and justice about how they began working in this space. We hope you enjoy the reprisal of our most popular podcast episode, talking to leaders about their work, passions, and journeys into the field of reproductive health for a fifth time!

Guests include: 

Jennie Wetter – rePROs Fight Back

Shireen Rose Shakouri – Reproaction

Kate Kelly – Center for American Progress

Maniza Habib – Population Institute

Dázon Dixon Diallo – SisterLove, Inc

Sarah Craven – UNFPA 

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On election day, Arizonans can vote to amend the state Constitution to establish the fundamental right to abortion. This amendment, which would undoubtedly increase access to abortion care, is especially salient given that Arizona has become an abortion access battleground state since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Alex Gomez, Executive Director of LUCHA – Living United for Change in Arizona, sits down to talk to us about Proposition 139 and what its possible passage may mean for the future of abortion in the state. 

 Proposition 139, the Right to Abortion Initiative, would enshrine abortion access into the state constitution and conclude that Arizona may not interfere with an individual’s pregnancy before the point of fetal viability (the measure also protects access past fetal viability in cases of protecting the life, physical, or mental health of the pregnant person). In addition, the ballot initiative would prevent punitive laws aimed at people accessing abortion, or those assisting them. 

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