Plus: Planned Parenthood ‘privately lobbied’ against pro-abortion shield laws.
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 REALLY REALLY don’t want to miss this week’s Goodnight and Good Dunk!
The big takeaway:Last Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that a bunch of anti-abortion doctors who have never and would never prescribe medication abortion didn’t have standing to sue over the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the medication in the first place. On the one hand: fucking obviously. On the other hand: I don’t know, man, I’ll take my wins wherever I can get them.
As you might imagine, this is hardly the end of the story. The anti-abortion lobby will not stop until medication abortion is outlawed. They will not stop until people who have, support, and provide abortions are criminalized to the fullest extent of the law, by which they mean facing the death penalty. I’m not being hyperbolic for effect. Last week, Trump virtually met with an anti-abortion group that calls abortion “child sacrifice,” and told a group of Southern Baptists that the GOP needs to ramp up lies about Democrats supporting at-birth abortions.
Rewire has great coverage of the mife case, including a special Boom! Lawyered report and a rundown from reporter Garnet Henderson. She writes: ” … the legal battle over medication abortion is far from over. Even this specific case still has legs. That’s because Kacsmaryk granted Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri permission to intervene in the case. The Supreme Court’s ruling leaves open the possibility that the case ends up back in Kacsmaryk’s court, where these three states could revive it.”
And: here’s verse 920239228398723 in the hit song called “Donate to your local abortion funds and grassroots repro justice groups instead of Planned Parenthood, I’m begging you, truly, I am begging you.” In case you’re paywalled, Planned Parenthood “privately lobbied officials in California, New York, and Massachusetts” against shield laws, which protect providers who provide tele-health care to folks living in states where abortion is banned. Planned Parenthood’s reasoning was reportedly rooted in the organization’s usual risk aversion, which has defined abortion rights-related litigation and policy-making in the United States for decades. I am of the opinion that this weenie bullshit is what got us Dobbs and and has done a lot of other harm in the meantime.
“Democrats Begin Their Offensive Against the Comstock Act” (NOTUS) — Of note: “Sources familiar with the strategy discussions on Comstock say Democrats’ legislation is not seeking full repeal of the law because it’s sometimes used to prosecute child sexual abuse material. Instead, the Democrats are solely focused on removing provisions that specifically mention abortion.”
“Who’s bankrolling these prominent abortion rights opponents?“ (Texas Monthly) — An A+ good old-fashioned follow-the-money story about anti-abortion lawyer Jonathan Mitchell’s quest to get paid by an East Texas shadow church run by Mark Lee Dickson.
Repro legal scholars Reva Siegel and Mary Ziegler are in Slate with a take on last Thursday’s mife ruling from SCOTUS: “The court’s decision in Alliance offers a road map for conservatives who want to challenge mifepristone access in politics and through the courts. … Kavanaugh paints a picture very different from the one announced by the court in reversing Roe and, more recently, by Trump on the campaign trail—one in which each state is left to set its own policy and state-by-state resolution de-escalates a polarized conflict. Instead, Kavanaugh suggests, disgruntled abortion opponents can take their concerns to the federal government, which can impose rules rejected by most states and the voters who live in them.”
Via Dr. Ghazal Moayedi and Pegasus Health: a reminder that pre- and post-abortion care visits, including contraception consultations and prescriptions are available in North Texas.
A day late to this, but this father’s day pro-abortion spot from Abortion Access Front featuring W. Kamau Bell gave me a chuckle.
Supporting families separated by genocide is a reproductive justice issue, which is why I’m fundraising for Aya Musallam and her campaign to reunite her family, who have been separated by Israel’s attacks on Gaza. They’ve lost their family home, and they’re spread out all over the world. Right now, Aya’s working to get her sister Lara, her brother-in-law, and her nephews Ayham (2 years old) and Yaman (4 months old) to safety and back together with Aya, her mom, and her little sister, who are in Russia, and Aya’s brother and father, who are in Egypt.
Aya is almost to her goal! We need to raise just €1,144 more to complete Aya’s campaign.
If you can donate even a few bucks, it makes a big difference. If you can’t donate, please share Aya’s Go Fund Me page widely with your networks, or you can like/share/comment/bookmark and otherwise interact with my fundraiser videos on TikTok and Instagram to make sure they aren’t suppressed by the cowardly, censorious algorithms.
🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉
The Fuck Are We Supposed to Do About It?
👕 SWAG OF THE WEEK! 👕
“Sweet feminist” Becca Rea-Tucker’s handwritten “pro-abortion” gear benefits I Need An A. There’s a shirt for literally everyone. I mean it.
📄 Anywhere: A must-read new report from If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justicelooks at how callers to their Repro Legal Helpline have been affected post-Dobbs.
🎥 Brooklyn: Join Pregnancy Justice and actress/comic/writer Ilana Glazer for a screening of “Babes” plus a discussion moderated by Jezebel’s Kylie Cheung. It’s Thursday, June 20. Register here.
🍽️ Knoxville, TN: “Latin-inspired” spot Babalu is hosting a four-course dinner benefitting the Mountain Access Brigade on Wednesday, June 26. Tix here!
🌅 Arizona: Here’s a big list of events with opportunities to sign the petition for the state’s abortion rights ballot measure. (Plus info on joining on as a volunteer!)
🦺 St. Louis area: Illinois’ Hope Clinic is looking for clinic escorts. Here’s how to learn more.
🐝 Anywhere: The “Pollination Station,” Apiary Practical Support‘s volunteer training series, is now taking applications.
🚗 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.
🤠 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
Donate to keep the West Alabama Women’s Center’s doors open so they can provide gender-affirming care, repro care, pre- and post-natal care, miscarriage management, and much more.
Buy a wishlist item for the Yellowhammer Fund‘s Repro Raven bus.
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.
Donate to rebuildAffirmative Care Solutions, the Illinois clinic attacked by an anti-abortion extremist who drove his car through the front of the building.
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.”
Here’s If/When/How‘s latest 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 — Colorado broadcast journo Kyle Clark refused to let up on anti-abortion politician Richard Holtorf in a TV interview last week. This is the tone mainstream and legacy reporters should be striking with all anti-abortion politicians, and it’s a shame it’s so rare.
But it is nevertheless eminently satisfying:
NEW: CO-4 GOP candidate Richard Holtorf has voted against abortion rights in the state legislature but said he respected his girlfriend's right to have an abortion "so she could live her best life." I asked him about that disconnect. #copoliticspic.twitter.com/WBB5YBmAcJ
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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