rePROs Fight Back

Less than two months into 2023, 325 bills aimed at the health and rights of transgender folks have been introduced in state legislatures around the country— more bills than the last four legislative years put together. Erin Reed, a queer legislative researcher and activist covering transgender legislation and life around the world, gives us an update on transgender health and rights in America, including what attacks to look out for and actions to take to protect bodily autonomy and human rights. 

 Bans on healthcare for trans youth, drag show bans, systemic abuse in schools, bathroom bills: these are just some of the vicious measures that have impacted the daily health and life of transgender and gender non-conforming Americans. 1/3 of bills introduced this year—97 bills—are designed to limit or ban gender-affirming care for trans youth. Often misrepresented as an interference to serious surgeries for minors, these laws end up restricting life-saving care, such as puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Arkansas, Alabama, Utah, and South Dakota have passed healthcare bans, with many moving through other state legislatures. 

20 states have passed bans on transgender youth competing in sports, with 40 similar bills introduced just this year. And, despite anti-rights legislators claiming that their bills introduced to ban drag shows are meant to “protect children”, bills attacking drag shows ultimately stifle “male and female impersonators” or the performance, monologue, or dance of people dressed in clothing opposite to their assigned gender at birth.

It’s important to remember that many of the same tactics used in these attacks can be found in attacks to reproductive health and rights. Both the health and rights of trans folks and reproductive health and rights are issues rooted in bodily autonomy that often intersect with each other. 

The sliver of good news? Even in the harshest state where these bills are being proposed, Democrats are holding the line in protection. Progressive states are continuing to increase support of the transgender community in response to anti-trans legislation around the country. In addition, sports ban bills seem to be losing traction.

Links

Erin Reed on Twitter

Erin Reed on Substack

The Anti-Trans State Of The States by Erin Reed

AAP Policy Statement Urges Support and Care of Transgender and Gender-Diverse Children and Adolescents

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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People’s ability to access healthcare and achieve positive health outcomes should not depend on who they are, but unfortunately, and all too often, it does. In the United States, this is particularly true for Black, brown, Indigenous, and low-income individuals. Abortion is healthcare, and it is just as difficult to access for disproportionally impacted people as other forms of healthcare. Liza Fuentes, Senior Research Scientist with the Guttmacher Institute, talks to us about health inequities in the current healthcare system and how abortion is unequally accessed around the country 

Even before Roe v. Wade was overturned, there were health inequities in abortion care, which has been true since the founding of this country. Resources that people need to decide if, when, and how to become pregnant and give birth include safe and affordable housing and communities, food and living wages, health insurance, and other elements of reproductive justice. Health disparity data exists mostly for Black, brown, Indigenous, and low-income women, AND it is important to note that anyone who cannot realize their sexual and reproductive health care—including transgender folks, non-binary folks, people living with disabilities, and young people—will then have disparate access to resources, services, and family planning care.

This translates into abortion restrictions. Almost 70 abortion clinics in the U.S. have closed since Dobbs overturned Roe, mostly in the South and Midwest. Thousands of people are now in a position where they have to spend thousands of dollars to leave their state, or self-manage an abortion in their state, or continue their pregnancy.  Those who are still able to get an abortion in these states include those with high incomes, with access to the most resources (including credit cards, savings account, support systems, time). What are the social identities that define the spectrum along which that money is distributed? Age, class, race, disability, immigration status, and income. The Hyde amendment, one of the most pervasive, restrictive, and disruptive amendments to abortion care, targeted low-income women outright. 

There are a few examples of protections post-Roe. Many governors and state legislatures—including Illinois, Oregon, New York, and Connecticut— have incorporated abortion rights at into the state constitution. Cities and counties are carving out budgets for abortion access, and even providing medication abortion in public health clinics and departments.

Links

Guttmacher Institute on Facebook

Guttmacher Institute on Twitter

Inequity in US Abortion Rights and Access: The End of Roe Is Deepening Existing Divide

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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Recently, the Food and Drug Administration announced that retail pharmacies in the US would be able to receive certification to dispense medication abortion drugs. Greer Donley, Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, sits down to talk with us about the FDA’s recent changes to regulations around medication abortion, including the current status of access, possible challenges, and how far these new changes really go.  

Since the FDA approval of mifepristone—one of two medications currently used in a medication abortion—in 2000, access has been harshly regulated. Usually, FDA-approved medications are easily prescribed by licensed providers and dispensed at a pharmacy, but mifepristone faces additional barriers, including a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) protocol. REMS restrictions are reserved for dangerous medication, and include a certification process for the clinician, requires that the medication be dispensed in person in the clinic, hospital, or medical office, and that patients must fill out a consent form. Every major medical association and major expert in the field has branded REMS restrictions for mifepristone completely unnecessary, as it is an incredibly safe drug to take—safer than Penicillin, Viagra, and Tylenol. 

During the pandemic, the FDA temporarily lifted the in-person restriction, as making people physically go pick-up medication abortion pills put them at unnecessary risk of COVID-19 transmission. The Supreme Court overturned this decision, but the Biden administration’s newly elected FDA Commissioner, in response, announced that they would not enforce the in-person dispensing requirement completely. A few weeks ago, the FDA began formalizing this announcement, laying out the reversal of in-person dispensing requirement and the allowance of some pharmacies to dispense medication abortion after a certification process. These changes will not have any effect in states that currently ban abortion, as state laws will stop pharmacies and prescribers from dispensing mifepristone. Even with the formalization of this rule, it is unclear how many pharmacies will go through the certification process to be able to dispense the drug. In addition, once pharmacies do become certified, patients will still need to find a certified provider to write than a prescription, and states will still have to follow state laws that restrict abortion.

There is a current legal challenge working its way through district court which would ban access to mifepristone. This case was incited by an anti-abortion group suing the FDA in Texas in an effort to revive the Comstock Act; this act, passed near 150 years ago, bans mailing “obscene materials,” the definition of which is being applied to abortion pills. This lawsuit is completely meritless, yet it is still making its way through district court where the only judges are anti-abortion Trump-appointees. In the U.S., more than 50 percent of abortions are medication abortion, and with Dobbs’ disruption of abortion care, this will be incredibly harmful to access post-Roe. 

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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New research from the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice shows that the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has devastated Latinas the most among people of color. In fact, nearly 6.5 million Latinas—42% of all Latinas ages 15-49—living in the 26 states that have banned or are likely to ban abortion. Elizabeth Estrada, New York Field and Advocacy Manger for NLIRJ, sits down with us to talk about what abortion access looked like for Latinas, immigrant communities, young people, and those in rural areas before and after the fall of Roe. 

Before the Dobbs decision even came down, abortion was not inherently accessible for Latinas in the U.S. In April of 2022, Lizelle Herrera, a woman in the Rio Grande Valley, experienced criminalization and incarceration for a self-managed abortion. Additionally, Texas’s six-week abortion ban, S.B. 8, has been hugely restrictive for many in the American southwest. These extremes have been a reality for marginalized communities already facing barriers to care long before Roe v. Wade was overturned. 

With the Dobbs decision now in effect, many states do not offer abortion care, forcing people to travel out-of-state if they can find an appointment. States, in response, are seeking to criminalize that travel. For those who are undocumented or are perhaps living in border towns in the United States, there are already a host of challenges getting to a clinic in one’s own state, let alone traveling far and wide within the country. Already facing increased surveillance, the presence of police and border control can often result in reproductive healthcare access being unrealized.

Despite abortion being a widely popular issue among Latinx people, there is, unfortunately, a mass of mis- and disinformation targeted at the community. Content on social media sites can be targeted based on demographics in an effort to intentionally mislead people, often into using crisis pregnancy centers—brick-and-mortar organizations that frame themselves as medical providers but actually do not offer abortion care, instead often coercing and shaming patients into keeping pregnancies. That’s why it’s important to talk openly with our loved ones, share personal stories that dispel myths (if you feel comfortable and safe), become involved in grassroots work, and lobby our elected officials. 

Links

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice on Twitter

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice on Facebook

Impact of Roe Overturning on Latinas from NLIRJ and National Partnership for Women and Families 

More information on the HEAL for Immigrant Families Act

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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The Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade has, in many states, decimated access to abortion care and prevented abortion providers from treating patients. Dr. Leah Torres, Obstetrician/Gynecologist practicing in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, sits down to talk with us about the state of abortion access in Alabama and how the United States’ healthcare system layout is generally preventing access to quality care. 

Currently, there is no abortion access in Alabama. Prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the rate of people dying in pregnancy and childbirth in Alabama was twice the national average. Lack of abortion access will only make these extremely upsetting numbers worse. In addition, the United States’ current healthcare system is compounding these dangers for pregnant and birthing people in this country. From transgender healthcare to abortion to vaccination, the politicization of modern medicine comes from the select few embedded in our current healthcare system who have money and power to gain by exploiting the framework and those who seek care within it. Some states, such Alabama, continuously refuse to expand their Medicaid program blocking insurance coverage for those who need it most, while also limiting which providers and clinics can receive Title X funding.  

 Medical students continue to face barriers to training in abortion care. Many residency programs state the miscarriage management training is the same as abortion care training, which is not true. Fellowships, which offer training in certain areas, are often years-long. This means after medical school and residency, many who want to learn about abortion care feel the need to take on another two-year long fellowship in family planning.

A lack of sex education across the United States and the gatekeeping of comprehensive information about healthcare intensifies the inability to realize sexual and reproductive health care. When powerful institutions control the narrative about our health and bodies, often informed by “religious freedom,” this can lead to interpersonal relationship problems and mis- and dis-information. While this may seem big-picture, it has a very pin-pointed impact, leading to providers like Dr. Torres to treat individual patients who are coming in for treatment because of lack of access to education and basic care elsewhere. Many who seek care at Catholic hospitals (entities that don’t often make their religious affiliation clear), may not receive the reproductive healthcare they want or need because of religious directives.

 Links:

Dr. Leah Torres on Twitter
Past podcast episode on Title X
Past podcast episode on Catholic hospitals
Keep Our Clinics
Plan C
Abortionfinder.org
Ineedana.com
Repro Legal Helpline
Repro Legal Defense Fund
Digital Defense Fund

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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Abortion funds work overtime to help patients hurdle financial and logistical barriers to abortion access, and their work has gotten increasingly more difficult after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Oriaku Njoku, Executive Director of the National Network of Abortion Funds, sits down with us to talk about the power of abortion funds, what they do for communities, and how they facilitate access to abortion care across the country. 

An abortion fund acts as mutual aid, facilitating and providing access to logistical help for those seeking abortion care. This help may include financial support, transportation, patient education, and more. Patients often reach out to a fund after they’ve scheduled an appointment, and the fund will work closely with the patient to come up with the financial difference needed to receive medical services (which is $500 on average). Funds work with other funds across the United States to ensure that money, resources, and support are given to those seeking an abortion.

Oftentimes, people that reach out to abortion funds for assistance are those in already marginalized communities, such as Black folks, Indigenous people, non-Black people of color, young people, those living rurally, etc. Those living in rural Mississippi-- a state that only had one abortion clinic before the overturning of Roe v. Wade—have compounding and intersectional factors that make accessing abortion care increasingly difficult, such as transportation, geography, income, race, ethnicity, and pre-existing abortion restrictions in the state, among others. In fact, over 90% of those living in the Southeast United States live in a county without an abortion provider. 

At the core of abortion funds is reproductive justice, or the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities, as defined by Sister Song Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. It is important to understand the difference between the reproductive health, rights, and justice frameworks and what it means to have human rights and social justice at the center of these conversations. 

Links

National Network of Abortion Funds on Twitter

National Network of Abortion Funds on Facebook

Take Action

It’s the holiday season, which means it’s the perfect time to challenge misinformed opinions around abortion and other reproductive healthcare when they occur at the dinner table. Talking about abortion destigmatizes and normalizes care, so let’s make sure we have these conversations now and year-round.

Donate to abortion funds! You can find NNAF’s donation page here, where donations can be made to specific funds or be split across their network of 90 funds!

Wear your support for abortion and abortion funds by buying some of this amazing merch. 

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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Longtime supporters of rePROs Fight Back know what time of year it is… tune in for a reprisal of our most popular 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 Hero Origin Stories Round 5 (Part 1) where we talked to a number of amazing heroes in the field of reproductive health, rights, and about how they began working in this space. This time, hear from Tarah Demant at Amnesty International USA, Gayatri Patel at the Women’s Refugee Commission, and Jennie Wetter, host of rePROs Fight Back. 

Guests include: 

Gayatri Patel at the Women’s Refugee Commission

Tarah Demant at Amnesty International USA

Jennie Wetter at rePROs Fight Back

Links 

Amnesty International USA on Facebook and Twitter

Women’s Refugee Commission on Facebook and Twitter

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

Longtime supporters of rePROs Fight Back know what time of year it is… tune in for a reprisal of our most popular series, SRHR Hero Origin Stories! If you haven’t already, checked out our previous episodes, SRHR Hero Origin Stories, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 2, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 3, and SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 4, where we talked to a number of amazing heroes in the field of reproductive health, rights, and about how they began working in this space. This time, hear from Rev. Katey Zeh, Executive Director of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice and Pamela Merritt, Executive Director of Medical Students for Choice. 

Guests include: 

Rev. Katey Zeh, Executive Director – Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice 

Pamela Merritt, Executive Director – Medical Students for Choice

Take Action:

Follow these organizations on social media and keep up-to-date on their amazing work!

Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice on Facebook and Twitter

Medical Students for Choice on Facebook and Twitter

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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The green wave, a liberal feminist movement started in Argentina, increased mobilization in 2020 in to decriminalize and destigmatize abortion across multiple countries in Latin America. Catalina Martínez Coral, Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Center for Reproductive Rights and leading member of the movement that decriminalized abortion in Colombia, sits down with us to talk about the inspirational movement, the human rights gains made across Latin America, and what the U.S. can learn from green wave activists.

Starting in 2020 in Argentina, hundreds of thousands of activists took to the streets outside of Congressional buildings on a weekly basis to demand abortion rights. Still, before the green wave spilled over from Argentina into Mexico and Colombia (which later affirmed the right to abortion), Latin America and the Caribbean was one of most restrictive environments worldwide for the access of abortion services. Currently, seven countries in the region have a total ban on abortion (El Salvador, Jamaica, Honduras, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Suriname). In these countries today, and in countries that had previously criminalized abortion, many people face or have faced limited exceptions to abortion access (abortion in the case of rape, to save the life of an individual, etc.), provider bias, stigma, and more.  

U.S. advocates can learn a lot from the green wave movement and its incredible activists. First and foremost, the U.S. must begin by incorporating human rights standards as part of domestic work. Second, the U.S. can continue to strengthen the abortion rights movement and its mobilization to make as much noise as possible around important, just, human rights issues. 

Links

Center for Reproductive Rights on Twitter

Center for Reproductive Rights on Facebook

Centro de Derechos Reproductivos on Twitter

#ThxBirthControl Toolkit

Take Action Items

Follow Center for Reproductive Rights on Twitter and Facebook, and Centro de Derechos Reproductivos on Twitter.

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Share Green Wave stories on social media! Similarly, support Green Wave activists at in-person strikes and events both in the U.S. and in Latin America.

Continue to have conversations with friends and family about abortion as a human right.

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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During the Trump administration, multiple myths and pieces of misinformation about abortion were widely circulated. While states were gearing up to pass the first round of near total `abortion bans, Physicians for Reproductive Health was building a comprehensive guide to gold-standard language when talking about abortion care. Kelsey Rhodes, leader of communications work at Physicians for Reproductive Health, sits down to discuss how to talk about abortion in the most inclusive, compassionate, and fact-based way and why it’s important. 

Gender inclusivity is incredibly important when talking about any type of healthcare, and particularly so in sexual and reproductive healthcare. Women, indeed, do need to be able to receive full-spectrum reproductive health care, but they do not represent every single person that should be able to access this type of care. Language that only centers “mothers,” and “women,” leave out folks of other gender orientations that also receive and deserve this kind of care, including transgender and nonbinary folks. The fight for abortion rights and transgender rights often intersects, and many abortion providers also provider gender-affirming care. Speaking about abortion means intentionally including the experiences of transgender and nonbinary individuals. 

The sound that people will hear at six weeks of gestation (if they are forced to listen to their ultrasound) is the medically proven electro cardiac activity of cells that one day could become a heart. The anti-abortion movement used that sound to signify “life” at six weeks of gestation, underlying the term “heartbeat ban.” “Heartbeat ban” gets repeated frequently by anti-abortion legislators, and by journalists who are reporting on new state-based legislation that restricts abortion. This term is intentionally used to create an emotional, visceral response. Journalists have a responsibility to report accurate information about abortion care and fact-check against myths like “abortion reversal,”

The coat hanger image refers to a time in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, in which people who wished to end their own pregnancies turned to clandestine methods of abortion because they could not access care. Using coat hanger imagery now does not reflect the time in history we are in now, which includes incredibly safe, scientifically advanced, modern methods of abortion care, such as medication abortion. Using coat hanger imagery paints a false picture of the physical safety and reliability of abortion care today, especially self-managed abortion. Similarly, Handmaid’s Tale imagery advances a fictional narrative that doesn’t accurately reflect how systems of oppression in this country disproportionately impact Black, brown, queer, and immigrant communities. The story centers white women and equates a fictional world to the real-time, lived experiences of those whose reproductive health and rights are being systematically oppressed across the country. 

Links

Physicians for Reproductive Health on Twitter

Physicians for Reproductive Health on Facebook

Physicians for Reproductive Health Guide on Language for Reporters

For more information, check out Relationscapes: https://www.relationscapes.org/

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