Plus, Brittany Watts speaks out: ‘History repeats itself. I don’t want it to happen in this case.’
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:Brittany Watts, the Ohio woman criminalized for experiencing a miscarriage at home — and who a grand jury recently refused to back charges against — gave a powerful interview to CBS. It’s also enraging to hear her talk about the hospital and her medical providers, who were tasked with keeping her safe and healthy, being the ones who turned her over to the cops. She says:
“The nurse comes in and she’s rubbing my back and talking to me and saying, ‘Everything’s going to be okay. You’re going to be okay,’” Watts said. “Little do I know, there’s a police officer that comes into the room a short time later. And I’m wondering, ‘Why is a police officer coming in here? I don’t recall doing anything wrong.’ And little do I know the nurse comforting me and saying that everything was gonna be okay was the one who called police.”
Police and prosecutors have no business being involved in anyone’s pregnancy outcomes. Ever.
“Texas teen birthrate rose for first time in 15 years after abortion ban, largely affecting Latinas” (NBC News) — To be clear, this is dismaying because it signals that young folks who wanted, and deserved, access to abortion care were unable to get it. Young people who want to become parents should be supported in doing so, without shame and stigma — just like young folks who choose abortion.
🇺🇸 What politicians and politicos on the national stage are doing and saying about abortion in advance of the ‘24 election:
I published a few op-eds/analyses on abortion last week!
For DAMEMagazine: Since can expect an emasculated and raging anti-abortion movement to escalate attempts to restrict bodily autonomy in 2024, I wrote about seven ways to fight attacks on abortion access.
Here on HWTA, I expanded on my DAME piece and looked at the connections between abuser logic, emasculation, and anti-abortion politics.
For MSNBC, I wrote about the new estimates on rape-related pregnancies published in JAMA, and the dangerous trap of “good” and “bad” abortions.
We Testify’s Renee Bracey Sherman and The Nation’s Regina Mahoneare in TruthOut with an evergreen reminder that abortion access isn’t guaranteed anywhere — even in “blue” states: “… rather than see this abortion landscape as one problem affecting us all, some supporters of abortion rights tend to pit so-called blue states against the so-called red states. It’s common to see comments on social media and articles declaring that states that have banned abortion should be discarded, or that everyone who supports abortion should just move to a better blue state. The problem with this idea is that no one’s access to abortion is guaranteed, no matter where you live. We know because we’ve lived in these blue states and seen people struggle to reach the clinic, just like in the red states.”
Repro legal scholar Mary Ziegler is in the New York Timesexplaining “how Trump could institute a backdoor abortion ban” by weaponizing executive actions, blocking access to medication abortion, and/or enforcing the Comstock Act. She writes: “If a Trump Justice Department began prosecuting doctors for prescribing or shipping pills in New York or California, that would certainly draw a court challenge, and the administration may not have the legal authority to follow through on the plans drawn up by anti-abortion strategists. But abortion opponents like their chances in the Supreme Court and have prepared arguments for Mr. Trump to use that are tailor-made for its conservative supermajority.“
The Tweets/Toks/Grams
I’ve been enjoying Rewire’s ramp-up of repro content over on TikTok. A taste:
🐝 Anywhere: The “Pollination Station,” Apiary Practical Support‘s volunteer training series, is now taking applications.
🙋🏽 Folks in Alabama, Mississippi, the Florida panhandle, Louisiana, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas: Applications for the Yellowhammer Fund‘s 2024 Catalysts for Reproductive Justice Fellowship are due Friday, February 23rd.
💌 Anywhere: It’s abortion valentine time! (Valen-time?) Join the Frontera Fund in writing a note of “tenderness and support” to people having abortions. And if you’re in the Rio Grande Valley, there’s an abortion teach-in and letter-writing party on Wednesday, January 31 with Texas Rising RGV!
🥂 Iowa City: The Emma Goldman Clinic’s2024 Choice event is Saturday, February 3, featuring Roxane Gay.
💻 Online: The Birthworkers of Color Collective is offering an eight-hour virtual abortion doula training on Sunday, February 4. Register here.
🥂 The Carolinas: The Carolina Abortion Fund’s second annual gala is Saturday, February 3, 2024.
🥂 Dallas: Join Jane’s Due Process for a celebration in Dallas on Tuesday, February 20 featuring Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi and drag performances by Cynthia Lee Fontaine and Barbie Davenport Dupree!
💻 Online: The Midwest Access Project‘s “Self-Managed Abortion Support & Advocacy” workshop is Thursday, February 22. Register here.
🤠 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.
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.
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.
The Center for Reproductive Rightshas an interactive online resource looking at “the current status of abortion rights through state court constitutional decisions.”
📚 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’sreport, “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.
Goodnight and good dunk — As a copy nerd, this gives me such a giggle. Tennessee’s Mountain Access Brigadenoticed that this anti-abortion billboard could very easily be read as advocating for free abortions. Hell yeah!
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.
If you’d like to get these abortion news roundups directly in your inbox every week, subscribe:
Home With The Armadillo 
Leave a comment