Plus: New Hampshire Republicans Propose 15-Day Abortion Ban

Here’s another edition of Hard to Believe It’s Only Tuesday, a weekly roundup of the top headlines, tweets, toks, takes, and more in abortion news. You can always email me (andrea.grimes@gmail.com, or grimesandrea@proton.me for more sensitive inquiries) or DM me on instagram with action items, takes, and news clips. This post is probably too long for email, so click the headline above or head to the HTBIOT page to get the full read in your browser, because you don’t want to miss this week’s Goodnight and Good Dunk!

The big takeaway: Two women’s experiences in Ohio and Texas expose the deep cruelties — in many ways deliberately engineered cruelties — baked into abortion bans and the treatment and criminalization of pregnancy loss in the United States, especially post-Dobbs.

• The story of Dallas woman Kate Cox’s fight to get court approval for abortion care in Texas has dominated headlines over the last week, exposing even more layers of anti-abortion depravity. Cox, who is 20 weeks pregnant with a much-wanted, but unviable fetus diagnosed with trisomy 18, ultimately was forced to leave the state to access abortion, but not before Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton threatened her, her doctors, and anyone who might help her access abortion with first-degree felony prosecutions.
• In Ohio, Brittany Watts, who is Black, is facing felony charges after experiencing a miscarriage at home, in her bathroom — a common experience. Watts tried to seek medical care at least twice and was turned away. The criminalization of pregnancy and pregnancy loss continues to disproportionately harm Black, Indigenous and Women and People of Color, whose pain and traumas are denied and disavowed again and again by the medical and legal establishments.

Laurie Bertram-Roberts of the Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund lays the connections between these two women’s experiences out clearly here:

The #KateCox case shows that #AbortionBan exemptions are false promises.
The #BrittanyWatts case shows the danger of fetal personhood.
In real time we are seeing the damage anti #Abortion policy brings. #AbortionIsHealthcare

— Laurie Bertram Roberts-Abortion Pills Are Safe (@smartstatistic) December 12, 2023

The Top Headlines

• “Anti-abortion attorneys ascend federal government ranks with Christian right legal training” (States Newsroom) — This is a must-read deep dive into the extent of the right-wing Alliance Defending Freedom’s growing power in American politics and the judiciary. The ADF is turning out class after class of religious ideologues with legal training and highfalutin connections, and they are not limiting their spheres of influence to already “red” or abortion-ban, or trans-unfriendly states.
• “Supreme Courts in 3 states will hear cases about abortion access this week” (NPR) — The states are Wyoming, New Mexico, and Arizona.
• “Black Ohio woman’s arrest after pregnancy loss begs the question, ‘What do you do after a miscarriage?’” (Reckon)
• “Texas Supreme Court rules against first woman to seek court-approved abortion in 50 years” (Austin American-Statesman)
• “15-week abortion bans are the center of Republican debate. Experts say that cutoff is arbitrary.” (The 19th) — The experts are right. The politicians are grifting.
• “Democrats Invest Early In State Legislature Races Where Abortion and LGBTQ Rights Are on the Line” (Mother Jones)
• “When an Abortion ‘Abolitionist’ Becomes Your State Senator” (Rewire News)
• “State abortion bans bar exceptions for suicide, mental health” (RollCall)
• “What it’s like to be a pregnant trans man in America” (The19th)
• “Being Black and Pregnant in the Deep South Can Be a Dangerous Combination” (KFF Health News)
• “Defense bill drops disputed abortion provisions in final compromise” (Military Times)

• 🇺🇸 What politicians and politicos on the national stage are doing and saying about abortion in advance of the ‘24 election:
  • “Biden campaign to ‘aggressively’ tie Trump to abortion bans, restrictions” (NBC News)

• 👩🏽‍⚕️ What’s happening with clinical abortion care, providers, medication abortion, and such:
  • “Pharmacies share medical data with police without a warrant, inquiry finds” (WaPo) — It continues to horrify and disappoint that medical industry professionals are leading the way in facilitating the criminalization of abortion, pregnancy, and pregnancy loss in the U.S.
  • “Pregnancy loss in America has long been a lonely experience. Abortion bans have made it perilous.” (The 19th)
  • “Supreme Court justices discuss whether to hear abortion pill showdown” (NBC News) — (No movement on this as of Monday 12/11/23.)
  • “Greenville abortion clinic could lose business license under county proposal” (South Carolina Daily Gazette)
  • “Dozens of independent abortion clinics closed in 2023 post-Roe, study finds” (The Guardian)
  • “Clearwater police no longer arresting protesters over abortion clinic buffer” (Tampa Bay Times)
  • “New abortion restrictions pose a serious threat to fetal surgery” (Stat)
  • “Abortions jump 23% in WA as visiting patients reverse decadelong decline” (Seattle Times)
  • “Abortions in New Mexico more than triple post-Dobbs” (Source New Mexico)

• ⚖️ What’s going on with abortion bans, legal challenges, and bills at the state and local levels:
  • 🟢 “Dane Co. [WI] judge rules that 1849 law doesn’t apply to abortion” (Wisconsin Examiner)
  • 🟢 “Judge allows expert witness testimony in Wyoming abortion suit” (WyoFile)
  • 🟢 “Kentucky woman sues to challenge state’s abortion ban in historic case” (Kentucky Lantern)
  • 🟡 “Missouri abortion-rights amendments face ‘torturous’ process to make it to 2024 ballot” (Missouri Independent)
  • 🟡 “[South Dakota] abortion rights groups don’t support ballot measure that aims to restore abortion access” (South Dakota Searchlight)
  • 🟡 “Ohio’s abortion protections take effect, but the fight over access continues” (The 19th)
  • 🟡 “Indiana attorneys debate overreach, obligation to ‘protect unborn’ in latest abortion ban hearing” (Indiana Capital Chronicle)
  • 🟡 “Tuberville relents on months-long blockade of most military nominees, blaming Democrats” (Alabama Reflector)
  • 🟡 “Planned Parenthood sues Fontana [CA] for allegedly blocking abortion access” (CBS Los Angeles)
  • 🟡 “Oklahoma lawmaker says there’s no legislative appetite to punish women who seek abortion care” (Oklahoma Voice) — This is a lie. There’s no reason to be talking about the ‘legislative appetite’ to criminalize pregnant people if it doesn’t exist. There’s plenty of appetite for it! All over the place! Case in point: literally the next story in this news roundup.
  • 🔴 “Missouri lawmakers propose allowing homicide charges for women who have abortions” (AP)
  • 🔴 “GOP seeking to head off ballot initiatives on abortion access, Florida’s included” (Florida Phoenix)
  • 🔴 “New Hampshire Republicans propose ’15-day’ abortion ban” (NBC News)

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The Takes

• I’m at MSNBC looking at Kate Cox’s lawsuit against the State of Texas and the “pro-life” politics of death, fear, and control: “It’s clearer than ever that pregnant Texans and their doctors face a puzzle the state has engineered to be unsolvable. Just two weeks ago, the state of Texas argued in front of the Texas Supreme Court that pregnant Texans or their doctors should go to court during active medical crises to get approval for abortions to ensure they don’t run afoul of the state’s abortion bans. Now that Cox and her doctor have done so, the court has said that asking for a ruling on the lawful medical necessity of an abortion — exactly what the state has said Texans should do — demonstrates doctors’ lack of confidence in their own medical judgment, making the abortion in question unlawful by default. This Catch-22 should be understood as a warning for everyone who might get big ideas about their right to control their own bodies.“
• Talia Levin at the Sword and the Sandwich looks at the history and contemporary landscape of anti-abortion violence and its connection to anti-abortion legislation: “From arson to legislation is not so far a distance as those who maintain a veneer of conservative respectability would have you believe. If a woman dies in a bombing, or if she dies of sepsis because a law prohibits the removal of a stillborn child from her womb, she is still dead. Terrorist violence and increasing legal jeopardy have combined to make women’s control of their bodies something beyond reach for tens of millions of Americans. All of it has been done in the name of God. And it is advancing, always advancing, an army of god on the march.”
• Abortion doula and author Hannah Matthews writes a moving and poetic piece in her newsletter about empathy and recognizing each others’ pain.
• “Law Dork” Chris Geidner unpacks the abortion cases in front of SCOTUS at present: “Notably, the far-right Christian legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom is at the court in both of these matters, having brought the mifepristone case on behalf of anti-abortion medical groups and recently having taken up representation of the state of Idaho against the Biden administration in the EMTALA case.”

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The Tweets/Toks/Grams

• The Palmetto State Abortion Fund says it louder for the “why don’t you just move” crowd in the back!!

• The National Network of Abortion Fund has a new and improved website!

Exciting news: our new website is now LIVE! 🚀

Info about reproductive justice is now more accessible than ever with new features including our Need an Abortion resource hub, the Find a Fund, and an educational resource section.

Check it out at https://t.co/Hz7lIn76OJ pic.twitter.com/LenQZG7W4G

— NNAF Abortion Funds (@AbortionFunds) December 7, 2023

• Rewire’s Garnet Henderson tweets a rundown of the latest Abortion Care Network report on independent abortion clinics:

🧵 A new report from @AbortionCare, out today, shows that independent abortion clinics (meaning those not affiliated with Planned Parenthood) continue to provide the majority of abortion care in the U.S.

— Garnet Henderson (@garnethenderson) December 5, 2023

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The Fuck Are We Supposed to Do About It?

• 👕 SWAG OF THE WEEK! 👕
  • Tote your pro-abortion pride anywhere you go with these cool Baggu bags for the National Network of Abortion Funds!
• 🎁 Anywhere: Here’s a massive Abortion Baddie Wishlist featuring merch from dozens of different pro-abortion orgs.
• 👶🏼 Dallas, TX: The Texas Equal Access Fund’s infant care resource drive is Saturday, December 16th.
• 🍑 Georgia: There are three, three, three! opportunities to join the Feminist Women’s Health Center‘s Legislative Advocacy workshop(s), on Thursday January 4, Saturday January 6th, or Sunday January 7th, 2024.
• ⚖️ Online, for lawyerfolk: Join If/When/How and the Birth Rights Bar Association for a CLE-eligible virtual training series on birth justice beginning Wednesday, January 24th.
• 🥂 The Carolinas: The Carolina Abortion Fund’s second annual gala is Saturday, February 3, 2024.
• 🔬 Anywhere, for abortion fund leaders: Participate in a UCSF study!
• 🦺 St. Louis area: Illinois’ Hope Clinic is looking for clinic escorts. Here’s how to learn more.
• 🚗 Kentucky: The Kentucky Health Justice Network is looking for volunteer drivers and case managers. Here’s where to sign up.
• 📱 North Texas: The Texas Equal Access Fund is looking for bilingual Spanish-speaking volunteers for their text line. Here’s where to sign up.
• 📥 Anywhere: Looking for a job in repro? ReproJobs can help you spruce up your resume.
• 🤠 Texas: Local teen-friendly businesses in in Bryan, College Station, Lubbock, or San Angelo can become pickup spots for repro kits assembled by Jane’s Due Process. Here’s the application form.
• ⛰️ Southwestern Virginia and Appalachia: The New River Abortion Access Fund is looking for volunteers.
• 🗳️ Anywhere, U.S.: Hey Jane x Vote America helps prep voters to support pro-abortion policies and candidates

• 💸 From your wallet:
  • The IPPF and the Palestinian Family Planning Association are attempting to provide care for tens of thousands of pregnant people in Gaza; learn more here and donate/spread the word.
  • Here’s the verified crowdfunding page for “Ashley,” the 13-year-old mother who was denied abortion care in Mississippi and profiled in TIME magazine.
  • Donate to support the Austin Women’s Health Center and their essential repro health services, including miscarriage management and abortion referrals.
  • Donate $$ and pads to Just the Pill’s mobile clinic.
  • Here’s the verified crowdfunding page for the family of Samara, a 17-year-old in San Antonio and Buckle Bunnies Fund patient who died from repro health complications.
  • The Valley Abortion Group is a new all-trimester abortion facility fundraising to open in New Mexico — donate to the GoFundMe.
  • Donate to the Online Abortion Resource Squad, which supports the R/Abortion subreddit 24/7/365.
  • Donate to Elevated Access, which transports folks for abortion and gender-affirming care.
  • Donate to ensure Desert Star Family Planning in Phoenix can keep providing essential abortion care to folks in the Southwest.
  • Find your local abortion fund and donate.
  • Buy something off the wishlist of an independent clinic, abortion fund, or clinic defense group, or donate to support abortion funds. This link distributes your donation to 90+ funds around the country. Or donate to support independent abortion providers.

• 🎙️ Podcasts!
  • Rewire’s Boom! Lawyered
  • Access, a podcast about abortion
  • Repro Legal Defense Fund’s No Body Criminalized
  • The Population Institute‘s rePROS Fight Back
  • Abortion Access Front‘s Feminist Buzzkills Podcast

• ✍🏿 Sign and share:
  • Anywhere: Sign this multi-org-backed petition demanding Google stop “collecting and retaining location data and aiding abortion prosecutors.”
  • Anywhere: sign the Fight for the Future petition to demand better digital safety and security on Slack!
  • Anywhere: Sign the RJ Response to Stop Cop City.
  • Anywhere: UltraViolet’s petition calling on pharmacies to provide medication abortion access where it’s legal to do so.

• 🔎 Abortion Resources
  • ⚕️ Abortion providers, rights, and support:
    • Looking for a clinical abortion provider? AbortionFinder and INeedAnA are trustworthy and updated regularly.
    • Here’s the National Immigration Law Center’s know-your-rights-guide to abortion access for immigrants.
    • Abortions Welcome is a “pro-choice spiritual companion for use before, during, and after abortion.”
    • Want to become a practical support volunteer helping folks access abortion? Read this essential FAQ from Apiary first.
  • 📚 Research:
    • Here’s If/When/How‘s new report on the criminalization of self-managed abortion between 2000-2020.
    • New research from Pregnancy Justice looks at the data behind rising criminalization of pregnancy.
    • Here’s new research from Gynuity on the safety and effectiveness of misoprostol-only medication abortion.
    • Read Dr. Autumn Asher BlackDeer’s report, “Towards an Indigenous Reproductive Justice: Examining Attitudes on Abortion among American Indian and Alaska Native Communities.”
    • Here’s new research on abortion access for incarcerated folks.
  • 🗣️ Communicating about abortion:
    • Check out the ANSIRH On Screen program’s latest resource sheet and recommendations on abortion portrayals in film and television.
    • Who Not When’s guide to reporting on later abortion is just great.
    • Check out the “Pro Choice, But” campaign to better understand how to talk with folks who are, well, pro-choice … but.
    • Read this guide on using trans-inclusive language from ARC-Southeast and the Transgender Law Center.
    • REPRO Rising Virginia has a thorough guide-via-Twitter-thread to keeping your protest signs fresh.
    • Physicians for Reproductive Health’s wide-ranging messaging guide covers all kinds of topics in repro and abortion care.
  • 🚓 Abortion and pregnancy criminalization:
    • Read this solidarity + organizing brief from Interrupting Criminalization and a coalition of repro and anti-criminalization orgs.
    • The Repro Legal Defense Fund and the Community Justice Exchange have an extensive, attractive, and fact-filled guide to abortion criminalization in both English and Spanish.
    • 🏠 Self-managed abortion:
      • If/When/How’s Repro Legal Helpline guide to internet safety.
      • Plan C Pills has published a self-managed abortion field guide in super fun, accessible zine form.
      • The Digital Defense Fund has a useful guide to keeping your abortion private and secure.
      • This gorgeous slideshow from South Texans for Reproductive Justice!
      • Check out the SMAZine from Urge and LiberalJane.

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Goodnight and good dunk — No dunk, just a reminder from the “Sweet Feminist,” Becca Rea-Tucker:

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That’s all for this week. I’m sure I’ve missed something you’d like to see featured in this roundup, for I am but one woman with a computer and an abortion-news-induced drinking problem. Holler at me — andrea.grimes@gmail.com or grimesandrea@proton.me for more sensitive inquiries, or DM me on Instagram, and I’ll try to add follow-ups as I’m able.

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