Explore every episode of the podcast rePROs Fight Back
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCOTUS’ Upcoming Term: What To Expect | 24 Sep 2024 | 00:30:31 | |
Next week, the Supreme Court term will begin. While there are no abortion cases on the docket yet, there are many cases that concern sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice and the rights of the LGBTQI+ community. Jessica Mason Pieklo, Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at Rewire News Group and co-host of Rewire News Group's podcast Boom! Lawyered, sits down to talk with us about some cases that face SCOTUS this term, as well as potential cases to keep a careful eye on. United States v. Skrimetti, which will be before the Court this term, involves challenges to Kentucky and Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors, and whether those bans violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution. In addition, some cases that could make their way up the docket include a grouping of conservative attorneys general are attempting to bring back challenges to mifepristone access, Idaho’s resurrection of EMTALA challenges, and Oklahoma’s appeal to challenge the Biden administration on requirements for Title X funding. Lastly, a petition currently sits before the Supreme Court that could potentially end the case that green-lit wrongful death suits related to invitro fertilization in Alabama. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Economics and Reproductive Health and Rights are Closely Intertwined | 17 Sep 2024 | 00:34:43 | |
Economics and reproductive health and rights are connected issues. Especially in states where abortion is banned and contraception faces increasing attacks, associated costs for care can vary widely. Kate Bahn, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, sits down to talk with us about the economic impacts of attacks to reproductive health and rights—on an individual, local, and national level. Access (or lack thereof) to abortion and contraception can carry a host of indirect and direct financial consequences. Costs from traveling to access abortion, obtaining childcare, and booking lodging can impact how people make their reproductive choices. Individuals can also be financially impacted by unplanned fertility outcomes, such as having a child at a time when they were not planning to. To learn more, you can find our podcast episode on the Turnaway Study with Dr. Diana Greene Foster here. Other financial considerations should also be afforded to those undergoing invitro fertilization and navigating miscarriage. In addition, research shows that those who have access to contraception and abortion experience more flexibility and exploration in academic and professional opportunities. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Want to Stay Hopeful in the Ongoing Fight for Repro? These Leaders Share Their Inspiration | 16 Jul 2024 | 00:29:41 | |
This week, we are doing things a little differently! We hear from advocates, medical providers, leaders, and researchers, who tell us about their strategies, reflections, hopes, and joys during the ongoing fight for sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice. Guests featured in this episode include: Jennie Wetter, Director of rePROs Fight Back Dr. Monica McLemore, Professor of Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing at the University of Washington and Director of the Manning Price Spratlen Center for Anti-Racism and Equity in Nursing Dr. Diane Horvath, OB/GYN and Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer at Partners of Abortion Care Beirne Roose-Snyder, Senior Policy Fellow at the Council for Global Equality Greer Donley, Associate Professor with a reproductive rights focus at University of Pittsburgh Law School Rev. Katey Zeh, CEO for the Religious Community for Reproductive Choice Tarah Demant, National Director of Programs at Amnesty International For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Everyone Loves Someone Who Had an Abortion: Abortion Storytellers Part 2 | 22 Feb 2022 | 01:06:09 | |
“We believe that everyone who has abortions deserves unconditional love and support. We believe that people who have abortions deserve to be in every space where decisions are being made. To borrow from the disability justice movement, there should be nothing about us without us. We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for.” -We Testify.
For this incredibly special part two of our storytellers podcast series, tune in to hear the abortion stories of Kelsea McLain, Jack Qu’emi, and Veronika—abortion storytellers from We Testify.
Links
Sign up to receive We Testify newsletters Passing the Women’s Health Protection Act Would Be Magical
Take Action
Follow We Testify on Facebook and Twitter to keep up-to-date on their essential work. You can also sign up to receive We Testify newsletters here.
You can also to get involved with We Testify, find more abortion stories, or share your abortion story.
Love the episode art? Find more of graphic artist Sage M. Coffey’s work here!
The Senate will be voting on the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) on February 28th. Call your Senators and tell them to support passing WHPA!! You can call the Senate Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Everyone Loves Someone Who Had an Abortion: Abortion Storytellers Part 1 | 08 Feb 2022 | 01:14:53 | |
“We believe that everyone who has abortions deserves unconditional love and support. We believe that people who have abortions deserve to be in every space where decisions are being made. To borrow from the disability justice movement, there should be nothing about us without us. We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for.” -We Testify.
For this incredibly special part one of our storytellers podcast series, tune in to hear the abortion stories of Anna, Sarah Lopez, Nick, and Stephanie Gomez—abortion storytellers from We Testify.
Links
Sign up to receive We Testify newsletters
Take Action
Follow We Testify on Facebook and Twitter to keep up-to-date on their essential work. You can also sign up to receive We Testify newsletters here.
You can also to get involved with We Testify, find more abortion stories, or share your abortion story.
Love the episode art? Find more of graphic artist Sage M. Coffey’s work here! For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| It Just Got Easier to Get a Medication Abortion (Some Exceptions May Apply) | 25 Jan 2022 | 00:38:30 | |
When the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved mifepristone--the first of two drugs used in a medication abortion-- in 2000, the approval process came with a myriad of restrictions. Kirsten Moore, creator and director of the Expanding Medication Abortion Access (EMAA) Project, sits down to talk with us about the evolution of restrictions on medication abortion over the past 22 years, as well as the future of medication abortion access.
In the mid-2000s, these restrictions were folded into an FDA program called Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS). These restrictions included a certification process for the clinician, requires that the medication be dispensed in person in the clinic, hospital, or medical office, and patients must fill out a consent form. During the pandemic, the FDA issued guidance for medications subject to REMS, easing restrictions on providers and patients—but medications requiring in-person dispersal was not included. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) sued the FDA, leading to a short period of time in 2020 when providers were able to consult with patients and prescribe medication abortion care through telemedicine and the mail. In January of 2021, the Supreme Court shut these abilities down. Still, in spring of 2021, the FDA announced that they would re-consider the current REMS restrictions. In December of 2021, the FDA announced the removal of the in-person distribution requirement for mifepristone and allowing in-person and mail-order pharmacy distribution.
Unfortunately, expanded medication abortion access will, like many reproductive health services, be dependent on where you live. At this moment, 19 states prohibit the use of telehealth for abortion care (the number of states may rise to 26 depending on the future of Roe v. Wade). Many patients who are seeking an abortion are already facing structural, financial, and logistical barriers that make accessing this care extremely difficult to begin with. Even so, the FDA’s lifting of unnecessary restrictions on medication abortion dismantles one less barrier to care for many.
Links Blog post- Supporting a Friend’s Abortion At Home
Take Action
Follow the EMAA project on Facebook and Twitter here.
Stay engaged in the fight to reduce barriers to medication abortion in individual states, and continue to talk about medication abortion as an option! Many people aren’t aware of it or know little about it, despit For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Disability Rights and Reproductive Rights are About the Ability to Control One’s Own Body | 11 Jan 2022 | 00:38:01 | |
The disability rights movement and reproductive rights movement both revolve around the ability to control one’s own body and life. Sam Crane, legal director at the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, talks to us about the disability rights movement’s long history of facing reproductive rights and reproductive autonomy restrictions, and why centering the experiences and voices of people with disabilities will increase access to basic reproductive healthcare.
People with disabilities have encountered an extensive history of attacks on their reproductive health, rights and justice through the eugenics movement, forced sterilization, guardianship, and institutionalization. And, unfortunately, people with disabilities continue to experience unique and disproportionate barriers to accessing reproductive health care each day. For example, legal rights and protections do not necessarily offer meaningful support, which will address people of color, LGBTQ+ people, people with low-incomes, and people with disabilities more acutely (Roe v. Wade provides a theoretical right to abortion but does not address any logistical roadblocks to accessing care).
Another barrier includes discrimination or stereotypes in healthcare settings (providers often do not ask people with disabilities about contraceptive options or abortion needs, and many people with disabilities may not trust healthcare providers due to the previously mentioned long history of attacks on reproductive health). Additionally, religious refusals prevent those with disabilities from attending healthcare appointments or taking contraception. There are also a variety of barriers those with disabilities face related to accessing reproductive healthcare. Many with disabilities rely on insurance coverage through Medicaid—but the Hyde amendment prevents federal dollars going toward coverage of abortion care. Lack of access to/ability to use transportation also prevents many from getting to the a healthcare provider.
The ability for people with disabilities to not only be able to access reproductive healthcare, but be fully realized in their reproductive rights and bodily autonomy ties directly to the current state of reproductive health in the U.S. Any successful attack on Roe v. Wade will no doubt distinctively impact those who are the most marginalized. At all levels of government, policy must be passed that centers those with disabilities experiences accessing reproductive healthcare. At the federal level, applicable policy includes the EACH Act, the Women’s Health Protection Act, and the Home and Community-Based Services Access Act.
Links
Report: Access, Autonomy, and Dignity: A Series on Reproductive Rights and Disabi For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| What a year!! Reproductive Rights and Transgender Rights Under Attack | 28 Dec 2021 | 00:40:53 | |
Reproductive rights and the rights of transgender individuals are issues that are deeply rooted in bodily autonomy and have been under constant assault for the past year (and many years before). Jessica Mason Pieklo, Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at Rewire News Group and co-host of the Boom! Lawyered podcast and Katelyn Burns, columnist for MSNBC, writer for Medium, and co-host of podcast Cancel Me Daddy, talk to us about the ways in which these two issues are intertwined as well as the importance of supporting reproductive rights and transgender rights as their own, incredibly important individual human rights concerns. The same systems seek that seek to oppress transgender rights undoubtedly oppress reproductive rights, and vice versa. For example, the recent Texas abortion law, SB8, bans abortion at six weeks and empowers pseudo-vigilantism, allowing for the reporting of anyone who “aids and abets” someone in accessing an abortion for a financial incentive. Similarly, in 2015, a Texas state representative introduced a bill that would supply $2,000 bounties to those who turned in transgender students found in bathrooms. It’s also critical to remember, though, that reproductive rights and transgender rights should be able to stand strong as their own individual issues, and that both movement deserve support based on their own merits. In 2021, transgender rights faced a barrage of attacks. Most notably, conservative lawmakers have pushed legislation that would prevent transgender women and girls from competing in sports. Other bills attempted to ban trans adolescents from accessing gender-affirming medical care, such as puberty blockers. For abortion access, 2021 has been the most devastating year since before the passage of Roe v. Wade in 1973. On top of the six-week ban passed by Texas and the multiple copycat bills popping up in state legislatures around the U.S., attacks on abortion access have accelerated greatly over the past year due to the extremely conservative make-up of the federal court system. Ceaseless assaults on transgender rights and reproductive rights point toward an exceptionally concerning direction that federal and state governments are headed—one that directly challenges basic human rights, bodily autonomy, and the safety, wellbeing, and health of so many across the country. Links Jessica Mason Pieklo on Twitter National Network of Abortion Funds map Take Action First, stay up-to-date on the newest writings about reproductive and transgender rights by following Rewire. Ne For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| How US Abortion Policy Harms Rape Survivors in Conflict Zones | 14 Dec 2021 | 00:45:59 | |
Rape and other forms of sexual violence have been reported by health workers, human rights observers, and civilians in conflict zones, including Rwanda, Bosnia, Tigray, and Myanmar. Yet, survivors of these human rights abuses are rarely provided the sexual and reproductive healthcare they need. Jill Filipovic, freelance journalist and author of The H Spot: The Feminist Pursuit of Happiness and OK Boomer: Let’s Talk How My Generation Got Left Behind, talks to us about how U.S. foreign policy has prevented the support and care of women who have endured sexual violence in conflict zones. U.S. foreign policy, such as the global gag rule and the Helms amendment, have prevented U.S. dollars to fund safe abortions for rape survivors and refugees even in areas where abortion is legal. In fact, the Helms amendment dictates that no U.S. funding can be spent on abortion as a method of family planning. Even though the Helms amendment’s wording should exclude abortions needed as a result of rape or abortion for those whose lives and health are threatened, U.S. federal dollars still do not fund safe abortion care. The global gag rule prevents U.S. funding for family planning abroad from going to groups that perform abortion with their own non-U.S. money, advocate for abortion, or refer people for abortion care. The rule has a broad “chilling effect”, stigmatizing the procedure and preventing groups that receive U.S. funding from engaging in abortion-related activities. While the Biden/Harris admin has rescinded the global gag rule it is not a light switch, just because the policy is gone it does not mean its impacts are. (Learn more about why we must permanently repeal the global gag rule by checking out this episode of rePROs Fight Back from earlier this year). As a result of U.S. law, many medical providers in conflict settings are able to offer post-abortion care—via the same medical machine or the same set of medications— but cannot offer an elective abortion, itself. Because women cannot access an elective abortion at the time needed, they may seek unsafe options and return to the medical provider for post-abortion care, after. This leads to increased rates of problems in pregnancy and childbirth, injury and death, loss of fertility, and more. Under the Trump administration, post-abortion care in conflict settings was scaled back, as well as radically expanded the global gag rule during the administration’s four years. Those who have experienced this trauma, which is rooted in a loss of control over one’s own physical safety and bodily autonomy, deserve control and ability to make personal decisions in the aftermath of a sexual assault. Ultimately, the U.S.’s policy must change to center the safety, health, and wellbeing of women and girls in conflict zones and to adhere to the principles outlined in the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.
For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| What Happens to Those Who are Turned Away From Accessing Abortion? | 30 Nov 2021 | 00:39:11 | |
Note: This episode and the episode’s shownotes utilize the term “women,” when talking about the Turnaway study results, because women made up all of the participants. Many people, including trans men and non-binary individuals, still require access to safe and timely abortion care. On December 1st, 2021, the Supreme Court will be hearing oral arguments to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—a 15-week abortion ban out of Mississippi, which will put the ability to access abortion care out of reach for so many. Dr. Diana Greene Foster, researcher at the University of California, San Francisco and author of the Turnaway Study: Ten Years, A Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having- or Being Denied- an Abortion, talks to us about her book on the study, the science and stories behind it, and why the upcoming Supreme Court case is a direct affront to reproductive health. The Turnaway Study began in 2007 as a way to answer whether or not abortion hurts women—an idea that has impacted policy for decades and has even underlined the Supreme Court’s decision to ban one type of abortion. The study followed a diverse set of participants from 30 U.S. facilities, comparing the outcomes of those who received abortions as compared to those who wanted them but couldn’t get them. For five years, participants were interviewed on their physical health, mental health, socioeconomic wellbeing, and life outcomes. The study quickly found the opposite to be true; limiting access to abortion led to women experiencing significant risks to their physical health, financial health, and life outcomes. Medical literature has made clear that carrying a pregnancy to term is associated with much greater health risk than having an abortion, which was confirmed by the study. Tragically, two study participants died as a result of not being able to access an abortion, while many reported higher rates of chronic pain, hypertension, and short-term mental health concerns. Additionally, women denied abortion care were much more likely to end up living below the federal poverty level, more likely to receive public assistance, more likely to be in situations of domestic violence, and less likely to set and achieve aspirational plans. People who received their wanted abortion had a higher rate of later intended pregnancies—increasing the likelihood that, down the line, participants had wanted and healthier pregnancies with better partners, more support, and when they were ready. Finally, the children of mothers who received an abortion experienced better outcomes as well, with less likelihood of living in poverty, and increased likelihood of achieving developmental milestones.
Links The Turnaway Study: Ten Years, A Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having- or Being Denied For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Hero Origin Stories: Round 4 | 16 Nov 2021 | 01:01:43 | |
It’s that time of year again—time to tune in for a reprisal of our most popular series! Longtime supporters of rePROs Fight Back have likely heard our past podcast episodes, SRHR Hero Origin Stories, SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 2, and SRHR Hero Origin Stories: Round 3, 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 abortion and sexual reproductive healthcare clinicians and providers themselves about their experiences and history working in this field.
Guests include: Rae Pickett, Director of Communications - Virginia League for Planned Parenthood Dr. Jennifer Chin - Fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health Dr. Christina Bourne – Trust Women Wichita Dr. Toni Marengo – Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest Dr. Deyang Nyandak - Fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health Take Action Follow these organizations on social media and keep up-to-date on their amazing work! Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest Facebook and Twitter Virginia League for Planned Parenthood on Facebook and Twitter Trust Women on Facebook and Twitter Physicians for Reproductive Health on Facebook and Twitter For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| From Texas to Mississippi: Roe is in Trouble at SCOTUS | 02 Nov 2021 | 00:28:43 | |
(note recorded before the oral arguments in Texas case) On Monday, November 1st, 2021, the Supreme Court heard arguments on Texas’s extreme and dangerous abortion ban, SB8. Ianthe Metzger, Director of State Media Campaigns with the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, sits down to talk with us about abortion access in Texas, the Texas SCOTUS case, and the upcoming Mississippi case in December that could threaten the very foundation of Roe v. Wade. Currently, in Texas, the state has continued to maintain its six-week abortion ban, SB8. The law is particularly unique in that it allows anyone to be able to sue those who assist in the provision or accessing of abortion care. To learn more in depth about Texas’s law, find rePROs Fight Back’s podcast episode here. The U.S. Department of Justice has brought the case to the Supreme Court, which will have, at the airing of this podcast episode, been heard on Monday, November 1st, 2021. During the hearings, the Court will be considering whether the federal government has the right to sue to block a state’s enforcement of such a law. Additionally, the Court will be assessing the specifics of the enforcement structure in a case brought by abortion providers. On December 1st, 2021, the Supreme Court will be hearing Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The law will be brought in front of the Court by the Center for Reproductive Rights in an effort to challenge Mississippi’s fifteen-week abortion ban that is currently blocked from going into effect. The state of Mississippi has explicitly asked the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision guaranteeing the constitutional right to abortion. Allowing this law to go into effect would overturn the core holding of Roe and will no doubt open the floodgates to allow similar states to pass restrictive abortion legislation. In fact, 26 states are currently poised to ban abortion if Roe is overturned, possibly affecting 36 million women, trans men, and nonbinary folk’s access to abortion care. If Roe v. Wade were to be overturned, patients in those 26 states will face decreased or nonexistent access to abortion care, be forced to travel hundreds of miles to visit an abortion provider, and place additional strain on the abortion clinics in states that will see an increase in out-of-state patient visits. It would also place an enormous, additional emotional weight on the staff of reproductive health clinics. It’s important to remember that Roe v. Wade is the floor, not the ceiling. Abortion access is, for so may around the country, a right on paper only. That being said, Roe is an important safeguard for abortion’s constitutionality and continued access. The Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) would secure abortion access a For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Purity Culture, Sexual Assault, and Christian Colleges: A Toxic Mix | 19 Oct 2021 | 00:33:48 | |
Purity culture, or the expectation that women remain sexually “pure,” is widespread throughout evangelical communities. Purity culture stems from the idea that men are inherently sexual beings and that women are not, placing the burden on women to be the gatekeepers of sexuality in evangelical communities, as well as to “control” the desires of men. Becca Andrews, reporter with Mother Jones Magazine, talks to us about purity culture and sexual assault at Christian colleges, with an in-depth look at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. To better understand what is happening at Christian colleges like Moody Bible Institute, it’s important to first understand Title IX. Any school in the U.S. that accepts federal funding must follow Title IX guidelines, which address discrimination on the basis of gender in educational institutions. Title IX has religious exemptions which allows schools to still follow the broad tenets of Title IX while being able to skirt issues that conflict with their religious beliefs. Betsy DeVos, Secretary of Education during the Trump administration, expanded and broadened these religious exemptions so that any school could claim religious exemption, even if a complaint made it all the way to the Office of Civil Rights at the Department of Education they can retroactively make the religious exemption claim. Moody Bible Institute has a history of Title IX infractions; for example, the school has kept women from participating in pastoral programs up until 2017, and they have also faced claims of discriminatory employee termination. In October of 2020, multiple students from Moody Bible Institute compiled their stories of sexual assault in a Google document, eventually crating a Change.org petition for their school to address its failings. These students were continually dismissed and paternalized by Moody’s dean, felt that the Title IX office mishandled their cases, were not presented with the appropriate resources or support for their cases, and reported that most communications and procedures regarding their cases were held within the context of the school’s deep-rooted purity culture. Becca’s article follows multiple students who bravely shared their stories of assault, abuse, harassment, discrimination, and lack of systemic support from Moody Bible Institute—all of which stems from the rampant purity culture that undergirds the programming and culture at Christian schools. Links They Went to Bible College to Deepen Their Faith. Then They Were Assaulted—and Blamed for It. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| SCOTUS Had a Big Term… What Does it All Mean for Health, Rights, and the Administrative State? | 09 Jul 2024 | 00:42:59 | |
On June 27th, 2024, the Supreme Court punted Idaho v. United States consolidated with Moyle v. United States, which called into question whether federal law protects doctors who provide abortion care in a medical emergency. Jessica Mason Pieklo, Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at Rewire News Group and co-host of Rewire News Group's podcast Boom! Lawyered, talks to us about the implications of the punted case, as well as other Supreme Court rulings that have utterly gutted the administrative state. Idaho v. United States consolidated with Moyle v. United States centered on the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), which upholds the right to needed healthcare in an emergency. The case centered around EMTALA wasn’t decided on merit—instead, it was dismissed back to the lower courts. At the same time, there exists a similar lawsuit out of Texas questioning EMTALA’s status against the state’s abortion ban. Other Supreme Court cases that will undoubtedly impact the health and rights of Americans include Grants Pass v. Johnson and Chevron U.S.A Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council. Grants Pass, in short, criminalizes and fines those without shelter—which particularly impacts queer youth, those facing domestic violence, people with disabilities, people with mental health issues, and youth who have aged out of foster care systems. Chevron takes deference and administrative decision-making power away from federal agencies and gives it instead to judges. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| A Patchwork of Access: Young People Deserve Better | 05 Oct 2021 | 00:39:08 | |
Young people deserve access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive healthcare—but those needs aren’t always easy to acquire in the United States. Diana Thu-Thao Rhodes, Vice President of Policy, Partnerships, and Organizing at Advocates for Youth, sits down to talk with us about the barriers young people face when in need of sex education and sexual and reproductive health services. Young people’s access to sex education in the United States isn’t a pretty picture; a patchwork of legislation at the federal and state level impact sex education, meaning there isn’t an overarching federal bill that mandates safe sex education. State policies include a wide-range of practices—for example, 39 states and D.C. mandate some form of sex education or HIV education, but what is included in those lesson plans vary across the country. State-by-state and school-district-by-school-district lessons could be abstinence-based, abstinence-stressed, or must include teachings on certain topics, leading to entirely different education experiences based on where young people live and go to school. On top of facing a patchwork of sex education legislation, young people feel disproportionate barriers to accessible sexual and reproductive healthcare. Many young people may not feel that they can make their parents aware of their healthcare needs, may not have access to transportation or money, or may not feel supported by the current health infrastructure where they live if they are transgender or gender expansive. Similar barriers make young people jump through a variety of hoops to access abortion care, as well. In addition, if a young person does not want to inform a parent or guardian in a state that requires parental notification, young people must seek a judicial bypass, a legal process that necessitates permission from a judge to receive the procedure. Six-week abortion bans, like the one recently passed in Texas, will undoubtedly and unduly impact young people who need access to abortion care. To better support young people in their access to sexual and reproductive healthcare and sex education, we must advocate for policies that ensure young people’s confidentiality when accessing sexual health services, pass legislation that expands sexual health service access across the country such as the Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act (REAHYA) and the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), address state-by-state patchwork comprehensive sex education legislation, remove forced parental-involvement laws, allowance of over-the-counter oral contraception without age restriction, and strengthen protections for LGBTQ youth and gender-affirming healthcare. A culture shift is required to support the health and rights of young people—young people’s sexuality is a natural part of adolescent development and cannot be shamed, ignored, or met with silence. Links Advocates for Youth on Twitter For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Clinics Forced to Turn Patients Away Under Texas's Unconstitutional Abortion Ban | 21 Sep 2021 | 00:38:37 | |
On September 1st, 2021, Texas effectively banned abortion in the state. Amy Hagstrom Miller, founder and CEO of Whole Woman’s Health and Whole Woman’s Health Alliance, sits down to talk to us about the tremendous stress that Texas’s new legislation has already had on patients, abortion providers, clinic staff, and abortion funds. Texas’s SB8 outlaws abortion care after six weeks of pregnancy—far before many people even know they are pregnant and before many people can even receive an abortion appointment due to the pre-existing restrictive laws in Texas. Because they are so blatantly unconstitutional, six-week abortion bans have been knocked down in twelve states before Texas. The statute also empowers Texas residents to become pseudo-vigilantes, reporting anyone who “aids and abets” someone in accessing an abortion. The Supreme Court allowed the law to be enforced on September 2nd. For more detailed information on the Texas law, check out our past podcast episode here. This new ruling will force patients to drive out-of-state to receive basic abortion care, putting a burden on the healthcare infrastructure of neighboring states like New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The law also puts an enormous emotional weight on the staff of clinics like Whole Woman’s Health, who are being forced to tell patients that they cannot receive the abortion care that they need. Links Whole Woman’s Health on Twitter Whole Woman’s Health on Facebook Whole Woman’s Health Alliance on Twitter Whole Woman’s Health Alliance on Facebook Why Texas’s New Abortion Law and the Upcoming SCOTUS Case are Stressing Us Out Podcast Take Action Items Firstly, follow Whole Woman’s Health on Twitter and Facebook and Whole Woman’s Health Alliance on Twitter and Facebook here. Continue having open, honest, and, positive conversations about safe and legal abortion access. If you can, donate to people doing work on the front lines in Texas, including Whole Woman’s Health and Whole Woman’s Health alliance. You can find a list of Texas abortion funds here and Keep Our Clinics here. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Did You Know UNFPA Plays a Critical Role in Humanitarian Settings? | 07 Sep 2021 | 00:39:41 | |
Afghanistan’s fall to the Taliban and the destruction caused to Haiti by a 7.92 magnitude earthquake have created two simultaneously unfolding humanitarian situations. Rachel Moynihan, Advocacy and Communications Specialist at the United Nations, sits down with us to discuss the work that UNFPA does to support and expand access to sexual and reproductive health and rights for populations in humanitarian settings, and how UNFPA is assisting in Afghanistan and Haiti specifically. UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency founded 50 years ago. UNFPA has three goals: 1) to end the unmet need of voluntary family planning; 2) to end preventable maternal deaths, and 3) to end gender-based violence. UNFPA is active in over 150 countries and territories, working in multiple humanitarian settings. UNFPA is able to gather the political will to address the reproductive health and rights needs of people in humanitarian settings while also providing critical on-the-ground services, supplies, and care. The COVID-19 pandemic and climate disasters have further stressed the ability for UNFPA to reach populations that may be in need of sexual and reproductive health care, menstrual products, and protection from gender-based violence. Lockdowns, layoffs, and inability to attend school have increased rates of abuse, child marriage, female genital cutting. In 2018, 1600 women per 100,000 were dying in childbirth Afghanistan, leading UNFPA to train 35 young women in the Gorom Harat region to become maternal midwives. Now, that rate hovers around 600. While that rate is still high, it’s lowering is due to safe maternal care and delivery services largely supported by UNFPA programming. UNFPA has also established 171 “family health houses” that provide 24/7 maternal health care in Afghanistan. If you’d like to hear more about the impact the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan may have on women and girls, you can find our recent podcast episode here. On August 14th, a 7.92 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on the same fault line that caused a similarly devastating earthquake ten years prior. This earthquake, in the shadow of the pandemic, a recent presidential assassination, and consistent food insecurity and gang violence, has compounded the country’s humanitarian crisis. Over 200,000 people lost their lives in the earthquake, with 10,000 injured. Because hospitals have experienced severe damage, UNFPA has rushed supplies into Haiti, set-up mobile teams and distributed reproductive health kits.
Links Take Action Follow UNFPA on Fac For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| What Afghanistan's Unfolding Humanitarian Crisis Means for Women and Girls | 24 Aug 2021 | 00:36:22 | |
As Afghanistan falls to the Taliban, a humanitarian crisis is quickly unfolding in the country. Hundreds of thousands of individuals have been displaced, with women and girls making up 80 percent of those displaced individuals. Gayatri Patel, Vice President for External Relations at the Women’s Refugee Commission, sits down to talk with us about the situation unfolding in Afghanistan, what it means for women and girls, and what we can do to help. Currently, there’s an urgent need to get people out of Afghanistan due to the ongoing conflict coupled with a major drought and ongoing impacts of Covid. Additionally, there is a growing humanitarian crisis of over 500,000 people that are internally displaced—they have left their homes in an effort to flee the Taliban, or their homes have been destroyed. All border crossing stations are controlled by the Taliban, making escape routes out of the country only possible by air. This makes shelter, food, and primary health services resources that are urgently needed by those in Afghanistan. These impacts of humanitarian crises are also disproportionately felt by women and girls, who also experience lack of access to sexual and reproductive health services, lack of access to education, and increased rates of gender-based violence. Over the last twenty years, women and girls in Afghanistan have gone to school, worked, accessed critical health care, and become leaders. As the Taliban has taken over the country and Afghanistan’s government has fallen, those rights have been pulled back—in fact, there are reports of increased rates of sexual violence and forced marriage, women and girls being barred from schools and workplaces, and women and girls being forced to receive permission from male relatives to leave the home. The international community must step up to support refugees from Afghanistan, without caps or quotas. The U.S. government can also ensure the safe evacuation of many women leaders by surging support for visa processing, securing routes to airports, and more. Survivors of gender-based violence, which is on the rise, need increased support. This includes medical care, psychosocial care, and assistance in finding work. Links Women’s Refugee Commission statement on the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan Take Action Follow the Women’s Refugee Commission on For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Why Texas's New Abortion Law and the Upcoming SCOTUS Case are Stressing Us Out | 10 Aug 2021 | 00:45:25 | |
It’s no secret that 2021 has seen endless attacks on abortion access. Most notably, Texas is attempting to not only ban abortion at six weeks but allow anyone in the U.S. to sue any person involved in providing abortion care or helping someone in Texas access abortion care. Jessica Mason Pieklo, Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at Rewire News Group and co-host of Boom! Lawyered podcast, talks to us about the abortion ban out of Texas and the critical Mississippi case making its way in front of the Supreme Court in the fall. Texas’ new (but not in effect yet) abortion ban that would ban the procedure at six weeks, before most people are aware they are pregnant. Normally, abortion bans like this require the enforcement of a state-actor, such as an attorney general or prosecutor. Instead, this statute empowers anyone as able to enforce this law. In short, Texas’ new law allows citizens to become pseudo-vigilantes, allowing the reporting of anyone who “aids and abets” someone in accessing an abortion. “Aiding and abetting” could include helping someone pay for care, driving someone to an appointment, or watching someone’s children while they attend an appointment. If this law goes into effect, patients in Texas would be forced to leave the state in order to access care. The law will also force abortion funds and other organizations to re-assess whether they feel able to operate. This fall, the Supreme Court will hear a case that proves a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade. Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey has previously established the unconstitutionality of Mississippi’s recent 15-week abortion ban, yet the Supreme Court has decided to hear it, signaling a troubling outcome. While it takes four justices to decide to take a case, it takes five justices to decide to change the law. Because no federal courts have disagreed with precedent before, there’s little reason why the conservative justices would want to take this case without the desire to change the law. With a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court, this case proves to be particularly frightening. If the Supreme Court upholds Mississippi’s 15-week ban, Louisiana’s 15-week ban will also go into effect. It is likely that the language used to uphold these bans would be applied to 12-week bans, 8-week bans, and 6-week bans across the U.S. Links Jessica Mason Pieklo on Twitter In Texas, Abortion Snitches Don’t Get Stitches—They Get $10,000 Take Action Follow Rewire News Group on Facebook and Twitter. If you can, donate For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Passing the Women’s Health Protection Act Would be Magical | 27 Jul 2021 | 00:33:48 | |
It’s no secret that state legislatures across the country are working tirelessly to restrict access to abortion care. From forcing patients to travel to neighboring states to stigma-based counseling sessions, accessing an abortion comes with countless hurdles. Jackie Blank, Federal Legislative Strategist and Campaign Manager for the Women’s Health Protection Act Campaign at the Center for Reproductive Rights, talks to us about how the Women’s Health Protection Act will ensure reproductive choice, bodily autonomy, and access to care in a time where abortion faces an unprecedented attack. Abortion is legal in all 50 states, but in 2021 alone, 90 abortion restrictions have been passed in legislatures across the country. Coverage of abortion care also faces extreme restrictions; the Hyde amendment prevents Medicaid, Medicare, and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) recipients from covering abortion at the federal level (Some states, 16, have a policy that directs Medicaid to cover all medically necessary abortions). These restrictions have created a state-based patchwork of care, forcing many to travel between states, traveling long distances within their own states, or being blocked from accessing abortion care altogether. This has disproportionate impact on communities that have historically been denied access to care, including Black communities, indigenous communities, communities of color, women, low-income people, those with disabilities, those living rurally, and LGBTQ+ folks. The Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) would create a federal safeguard against laws (like Texas’ S.B. 8) that are meant to restrict access. By preventing the singling out of abortion care as opposed to other types of healthcare, WHPA would prevent impeding of access. WHPA specifically enumerates the types of bans that would violate the right to abortion care, including court rulings. In fact, WHPA would protect access to care even if Roe v. Wade were to be overturned. If WHPA were to be passed, patients wouldn’t have to be subject to limitations like stigma-based counseling, multiple trips to a provider, or expensive childcare costs. Links Center for Reproductive Rights on Twitter Center for Reproductive Rights on Facebook More Information on the Women’s Health Protection Act S.1645 - Women’s Health Protection Act of 2019 Take Action Follow Center for Reproductive Rights on Facebook and Twitter to stay up-to-date on their critical work. It’s time to get the House moving on passing WHPA. Find a ta For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| From Communion to the Courts: Reproductive Health and the Catholic Church | 13 Jul 2021 | 00:32:19 | |
Reproductive health and the Catholic church have been heavily featured in the current news—from the Fulton v. Philadelphia Supreme Court case to the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops moving to deny President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, the sacrament of communion. Jamie Manson, President of Catholics for Choice, talks to us about these recent instances of the Catholic Church’s reach over sexual and reproductive health and rights.
The Fulton v. Philadelphia Supreme Court case involved Catholic Social Services, a foster care center, which was contracted with the city of Philadelphia. The city upheld non-discrimination laws which prohibiting it from contracting with discriminatory social services agencies. Catholic Social Services expressly stated that they would not engage in any services with same-sex couples or unmarried couples, leading the city of Philadelphia to sever its contract and Catholic Social Services to sue the city under the first amendment. Ultimately, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Catholic Social Services in an extremely narrow ruling.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been in animus with current President Joe Biden’s support of abortion rights and policy, even though President Biden is a devout and practicing Catholic. Since the day his Presidency was called, the bishops have been outspoken against his administration. In November, the bishops established a special committee to explore the confusion that Biden’s status as a pro-choice Catholic president could create within the church. The committee voted to create a document that bans Catholic and pro-choice elected officials from receiving the holy sacrament of communion. The U.S. Conference of Bishops will vote on the passage of this document in November and will need a two-thirds majority vote for success.
Links Catholics for Choice on Twitter More Information on Fulton v. Philadelphia How Your Catholic Hospital is Restricting Your Care Podcast Episode
Take Action
Follow Catholics for Choice on Facebook and Twitter here.
You can write to Bishops who have spoken out against the move to restrict communion from pro-choice elected officials. You can also write to President Biden and Catholic Congresspeople and thank them for their support of abortion rights.
You can also learn more about Catholic hospitals here, and listen to Jamie M For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Demystifying Self-Managed Abortion | 29 Jun 2021 | 00:30:29 | |
When many people hear the term ‘self-managed abortion,’ they may think unsafe abortion or pre-Roe v. Wade methods of terminating a pregnancy. Nowadays, self-managed medication abortion is extremely safe, effective, and can be done in the comfort and privacy of one’s own home. Erin Matson, Executive Director of Reproaction, sits down to talk with us about the myths, barriers to care, and the actions folks can take around self-managed abortion.
Self-managed abortion refers to when somebody ends their pregnancy outside of a medical setting. “The World Health Organization (WHO) has put misoprostol on the list of essential medicines and created a protocol for how women may manage their abortion with misoprostol without direct provider supervision.” Many choose to end their pregnancies outside of clinic settings due to immigration status, fear of being misgendered or patronized by clinic staff, or fear of protestors.
Despite the fact that medication abortion has been approved by the FDA for over 20 years, providers who wish to dispense medication abortion have to jump through extra logistical hoops to do so. Patients themselves face an in-person dispensing requirement, meaning they have to be physically handed the medications by their doctor rather than picking them up at a pharmacy (during the pandemic, the Biden administration has repealed that rule so that folks can access medication abortion through telemedicine and not expose themselves unnecessarily to COVID-19). The FDA has also announced that it will be conducting a formal review of the restrictions set in place for medication abortion.
Abortion pill “reversal” is an unsubstantiated claim that a medication abortion can be reversed with progesterone. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says there’s no evidence that this procedure is effective. It’s misinformation like this, though, that permeates the public understanding of abortion and erects more barriers to care.
Links Reproaction information on self-managed abortion What do Bridges, Roads, and Abortions Have in Common? – article by Erin Matson
Take Action You can follow Reproaction on Twitter and Facebook and stay up-to-date on their work.
Educate yourself on how self-managed abortion works! You can start b For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| End the Global Gag Rule: Pass Global HER Now | 21 Jun 2021 | 00:28:45 | |
The Global Gag Rule has been intermittently preventing global communities from accessing comprehensive healthcare for the last 37 years. This Global Gag Rule Repeal Week of Action, it’s important to recognize that ending this harmful policy is extremely urgent. Rebecca Dennis, Senior Legislative Policy Analyst at PAI, sits down to update us on the Global Gag Rule, the impacts it has had around the world, and what we can do to make sure it is repealed once and for all.
The Global Gag Rule is an executive-level policy that has existed under every Republican presidential administration since Ronald Reagan, but was vastly expanded under Donald Trump. The policy under Trump withheld global health assistance funding from foreign NGOs unless they agree to not use any of their own, non-U.S. funding to provide abortions or any information, education, counseling, or referrals for abortion care. This was a huge expansion compared to under previous administrations where it only applied to family planning funding. To learn more about the history of the Global Gag Rule, find our podcast episode here!
The Global Gag Rule has prevented people around the world from accessing sexual and reproductive health care, maternal and child health care, HIV testing and treatment, tuberculosis and malaria testing and treatment, and nutrition programs. It has limited which commodities—including methods of contraception—can reach communities, and caused organizations to have to end entire programs. The rule has also restricted outreach to hard-to-reach communities, including young people, LGBTQI+ people, and those living in very rural areas or refugee camps.
For many years, the policy only applied to U.S. family planning and reproductive health programs. But after the Trump administration’s entry into the Oval Office in January of 2017, one of their first executive actions included re-instating and massively expanding the Global Gag Rule to impact all U.S. global health assistance funding. This expansion went above and beyond USAID, ultimately impacting programs in the State Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The administration expanded it a second time, changing the interpretation of the policy and forcing organizations that were complying with the policy to ensure that any of their partnerships were complying, as well even if they did not get any impacted U.S. health funding.
In January of 2021, the Biden-Harris administration repealed the Global Gag Rule. Despite this momentous step, the policy is not a light switch that can be turned on and off. Many organizations who did not comply with the rule now have to wait until there are additional funding opportunities with the U.S. government, while some are concerned that the policy might return and interrupt their work, again. Even beyond all of this, clinics have closed, and For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| DC Statehood is a Reproductive Justice Issue | 15 Jun 2021 | 00:32:32 | |
Did you know that in a 2016 referendum, 86% of D.C. residents voted in favor of statehood? Dr. Serina Floyd, OB/GYN and Medical Director/Vice President of Medical Services at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. and Kory Stuer, Public Affairs Manager at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C, sit down to talk with us about the importance of statehood for Washington, D.C., and what it would mean for the reproductive health, rights, and justice of D.C. residents.
Washington, D.C., is a district of more than 700,000 tax-paying residents, all of whom do not have basic democratic rights-- including voting representation in Congress. D.C. residents also do not have control over how tax dollars are spent at the local-level, meaning members of Congress can block or overturn any D.C.-based bills. D.C’s lack of statehood has a direct impact on the public health of its residents.
The district has high levels of inequity in health outcomes, with those who are most marginalized also experiencing the highest rates of health inequalities. For example, D.C.’s maternal mortality rate for Black residents is so high that it the district has the 5th worst overall rate in the country, 50% higher than the national average. The D.C. Council has introduced the Maternal Health Resources and Access Act, which, if passed, will respond to this crisis, and improve access through multiple mechanisms.
The recent release of the President’s budget repealed the Hyde amendment and the D.C. abortion ban (this ban refers to a separate appropriations rider that prevents the District from using their own tax dollars for funding abortion care). In 2017, young people between the ages of 13 and 24 accounted for 41% of HIV diagnoses in D.C.; double the national average. Yet, members of Congress have routinely voted for bills that prevent young people from accessing sexual and reproductive health care without their parent’s consent and stymied needle exchange programs. Lack of D.C. statehood has no doubt impact the district when it comes to COVID-19. Black residents have made up 50% of COVID cases and 70% of deaths yet have only received 37% of vaccinations.
There is current legislation that has a historic level of support led by Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton in the House and Senator Tom Carper in the Senate. The bill, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, creates a new state out of the specifically residential areas. You can learn more about it here.
Links Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. on Facebook Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| How Originalism in the Court Directly Impacts Americans’ Health and Rights | 02 Jul 2024 | 00:35:20 | |
In the past month, the Supreme Court has interacted with three cases that have stark implications for the reproductive health, rights, and wellbeing of many across the U.S. Madiba Dennie, author of The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take it Back and Deputy Editor and Senior Contributor at the legal commentary outlet Balls and Strikes, sits down to talk to us about originalism, the recent Supreme Court case rulings, and what it all means for the sexual and reproductive health and rights of Americans. On June 13, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that plaintiffs in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine—which challenged access to nationwide medication abortion—did not have a legal standing. For now, this ruling preserves the post-Dobbs status-quo, protecting access to mifepristone, a safe and common medication used in nearly two-thirds of abortions, in some states. On June 21, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Rahimi to prevent those with previous domestic violence restraining orders filed against them to possess firearms. And on June 27th, the Supreme Court dismissed a case that would have prevented abortion in the case of medical emergency in Idaho. Access remains protected—for now. Many of the recent Supreme Court cases are rooted in originalism, or the application of U.S. “history” and “tradition” to undermine rights, which has been a trusted roadmap for anti-rights actors in the courts. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| How U.S. Policy Impacts LGBTQI+ People Around the World | 09 Jun 2021 | 00:35:14 | |
Under the Trump administration, global LGBTQI+ health and rights faced an unprecedented assault. Andrea Gillespie, Sexual Health and Rights Policy Advisor with the American Jewish World Service (AJWS), sits down to talk with us about progress made by the Biden-Harris administration and what pieces of legislation we can advance to prevent backsliding.
Under the Trump administration, global LGBTQI+ rights were facing unprecedented attack. In fact, those serving in the Trump administration had long records of opposing LGBTQI+ rights and reproductive rights—including officials at the U.S. State Department and USAID. The State Department attempted to erase the reality of global sexual and reproductive health and rights, removing the term “sexual and reproductive health and rights” altogether from their Annual Human Rights Reports. The removal of this topic from the reports limited our comprehensive understanding and tracking of reproductive health and rights progress for LGBTQI+ people around the world. Then-Secretary Mike Pompeo’s Commission on Unalienable Rights sought to re-define and cherry-pick human rights, with the health and rights of LGBTQI+ individuals at the bottom of the ladder. Trump’s drastically expanded Global Gag Rule also worsened the barriers that LGBTQI+ individuals faced when accessing healthcare, including HIV treatment and prevention.
The Biden administration has begun putting in place policies that work to repair and support LGBTQI+ health and rights. President Biden rescinded the expanded Global Gag Rule during his first week in office. In early February, when President Biden visited the State Department for the first time, his comments centered the health and rights of LGBTQI + individuals and, shortly after, the White Memorandum on Advancing the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Persons Around the World was released. The Biden-Harris administration has also recognized and released statements on Trans-Visibility Day and International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia.
In order to prevent backsliding on global LGBTQI+ health and rights, we must repeal the Global Gag Rule for good. The Global HER Act would permanently repeal this harmful policy, allowing LGBTQI+ people to have expanded access to abortion services and other reproductive health care. Similarly, the Helms amendment must be repealed in order to make sure all people have the ability to access the care that they need. During appropriations season, it’s also important to direct funding to LGBTQI+ rights programs, including those run from the State Department and USAID that fight to shift norms, end discrimination, and provide safety and security. Lastly, the Greater Leadership Overseas for the Benefit of Equality (GLOBE) Act, sponsored by Representative Dina Titus [D-NV-1] would recognize the impact of foreign policy tools on LGBTQ+ rights.
Links For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Ending Hyde is a Step Towards Abortion Justice | 01 Jun 2021 | 00:29:42 | |
What does a world that has achieved abortion justice look like? It has access to a full spectrum of reproductive health care, where abortion is affordable, accessible, safe, de-stigmatized, without barriers, and never based on income or zip code. Daniela Ochoa Diaz, Federal Strategies Manager with All* Above All, sits down to talk with us about what we need to accomplish to reach abortion justice for all.
Abortion justice applies a justice lens to abortion care and access, applying how economic and systemic insecurity and immigration status multiply the barriers to care. All* Above All’s Abortion Justice Campaign features four pillars: 1) strategy accelerators; 2) narrative shapers; 3) policy movers; and 4) network builders. Strategy accelerators build momentum and power by sharing tools and resources with partners at all levels. Narrative shapers shift the cultural narrative and public perception on abortion. Policy movers push proactive abortion policy at all levels of government. Network builders bring partners together in a way that builds across movements.
Living in a world that has achieved abortion justice requires reaching out to and engaging with local, state, and federal elected officials, organization and activation, and having empowered conversations with friends and family. It also calls for removing abortion restrictions in individual states and repealing the Hyde amendment—a 1976 appropriations amendment that blocks federal funding for abortion care, meaning those who receive health insurance coverage via the Medicare program have to pay out-of-pocket for an abortion. The Hyde amendment expands to Indian Health Services, the District of Columbia, those who work in the federal government, and those serving in the U.S. military and the Peace Corps.
The Equal Access To Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act would repeal the Hyde amendment. The re-introduction of the EACH Act this Congressional session showed a record number of original co-sponsors. A clean Presidential budget would provide a blueprint for appropriations committees in the House and Senate to construct bills without the Hyde amendment. Passing the EACH Act and having a clean presidential budget would push the U.S. towards achieving abortion justice once and for all.
Links Past podcast episode on the Hyde Amendment.
Take Action
Follow All* Above All on Facebook and For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| The Supreme Court Case that Threatens Roe | 20 May 2021 | 00:24:46 | |
On Monday, May 17th, the Supreme Court announced that they would hear a court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (JWHO), out of Mississippi that seeks to ban almost all abortion at 15 weeks or later. Dr. Daniel Grossman, obstetrician/gynecologist, Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California San Francisco, and Director of a policy-based research program within the OB/GYN Department entitled Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), sits down with us in this emergency podcast episode to discuss the gestational bans at the center of the case that strikes at the heart of Roe.
The Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v JWHO could open the option for individual states to impose abortion bans before fetal viability, —a core tenant that is explicitly protected in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. 15 weeks is a significant amount of time before viability (which can range 24 to 28 weeks after a person’s last menstrual period). Gestational bans have become increasingly common across the U.S., acting as yet another time-limit on people’s access to get abortion care. The majority of patients that are most impacted by these restrictions are Black, indigenous, people of color, living at or below the federal poverty level, young, and/or LGBTQ.
This blatantly unconstitutional ban was passed with the goal of getting in front of the Supreme Court, which now has a 6-3 conservative majority. The Justices will have the case presented to them next session, which begins in October. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Let's Get Proactive About Expanding Abortion Access! | 18 May 2021 | 00:35:43 | |
While Roe v. Wade may be the law of the land, abortion has always been inaccessible and a right on paper only for so many in the United States. Since the passage of Roe, there have been 1,200 abortion restrictions enacted, with 2021 on track to be one of the worst years for abortion restrictions. Jamille Fields-Allsbrook, Director of Women’s Health and Rights at the Center for American Progress and Nora Ellmann, Research Associate for Women’s Health and Rights at the Center for American Progress, sit down to talk with us about what actions need to be taken to ensure a proactive abortion agenda for the U.S. from their report, A Proactive Abortion Agenda: Federal and State Policies To Protect and Expand Access.
First and foremost, the comprehensive right to abortion, without restriction and without political interference, must be codified at the legislative level. Championing laws like the Women’s Health Protection Act would help block many of these restrictions, such as 20-week bans and targeted regulation of abortion provider (TRAP) laws. Financial support for abortion access is also critical; passage of the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act would permanently repeal the Hyde Amendment and prohibits political interference with decisions by private insurance companies to cover abortion. Individual states can repeal harmful legislation and pass proactively progressive legislation to expand access to medication abortion, decriminalize self-managed abortion, and remove restrictions on physicians.
At the executive level, it’s important that they select judicial nominees that are diverse and have backgrounds in civil rights, reproductive rights, and abortion rights. The President must also have a budget that doesn’t allow for federal funding restrictions, like the Hyde Amendment, on abortion access. Finally, undue regulations on abortion-related insurance billing practices must be repealed. Already, the current administration has increased access to medication abortion during the COVID-19 pandemic. To learn more about this step taken by the Biden administration, listen to our podcast episode here.
When it comes to the judiciary: we need to pay attention to the courts! Again, it’s critical that judges appointed to all levels of the U.S. court system come from diverse backgrounds and have supportive records for reproductive health, rights, and justice. The courts must continue to uphold precedent and respect abortion as a right that has been established under the Constitution. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| The Biden Administration's First 100 Days: Accomplishments, Shortcomings, and Next Steps | 04 May 2021 | 00:33:05 | |
We have just passed 100 days of the Biden-Harris Administration! Christina Krysinski, Counsel and Senior Manager of Policy at NARAL Pro-Choice America sits down to talk with us about the reproductive health and rights victories achieved during this period, as well as what the administration can do more of to ensure health and rights for all. In his second week in office, President Biden ended the Trump administration’s expanded global gag rule (also known as the Mexico City policy), and also began the process of restoring funding to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in order to restore access to sexual and reproductive health care around the world. The President also withdrew U.S. support for the Trump administration’s anti-choice, anti-LGBTQ Geneva Consensus Declaration, sending the message that the United States will no longer be a barrier to progress for reproductive freedom. Lastly, during the release of the State Department’s 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the U.S. will resume reporting on reproductive rights. Domestically, the Biden administration has also made significant strides in expanding and protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights. This month, the FDA announced that it will stop enforcing a restriction that would force people accessing medication abortion pills to do so in-person at a hospital, clinic, or doctor’s office for the duration of the pandemic. The administration proposed the ending of the Trump administration’s “domestic gag rule,” which prevented reproductive health providers that are funded by the nation’s Title X program from providing transparent and equitable care. The White House also officially established the Gender Policy Council, which will work to advance gender equity and sexual and reproductive health and rights. The administration has also appointed officials that are committed to protecting reproductive health and rights both globally and domestically, including the Vice President Kamala Harris, The Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, Assistant Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine (the first openly transgender, Senate-confirmed federal official), United States Assistant Attorney General Venita Gupta, nominee for Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, UN Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, and USAID Administrator Samantha Power. While the Biden administration has accomplished much for reproductive health and rights, there is still so much more that needs to be done. Many organizations and groups continue to call for an increased sense of urgency from the administration. President Biden and other federal officials have yet to say the word “abortion” in a public address; doing so recognizes the reality of the abortion access crisis and contributes to de-stigmatization on a national level. It’s also vital that th For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Biden-Harris Administration Takes First Steps to Strengthen Both Title X and Medication Abortion Access | 20 Apr 2021 | 00:34:56 | |
Last week the Biden took two actions to expand access to reproductive health care: the FDA lightening restrictions to medication abortion access during the pandemic and the Biden administration beginning its rollback of Trump’s harmful Title X program rules. Dee Srivastava, Policy Analyst at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Nina Serriane, Legislative Affairs Manager at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, celebrate the recent changes in access to medication abortion and the lifting of restrictions on the national Title X program with us. On April 12th, 2021, the Food and Drug Administration suspended a medically unnecessary barrier to medication abortion—requiring patients to access medication abortion pills in person at a hospital, doctor’s office, or clinic—for the remainder of the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that people will not need to expose themselves to COVID to get the basic care that they need in states that permit it. It also allows patients in some states to access abortion care in a way that is safe, effective, and ensures privacy. It is important to remember that restrictions to medication abortion care existed before the pandemic, and after the pandemic is over we need to fight to ensure these unnecessary barriers to abortion access are eliminated permanently. In 2019, the Trump-Pence administration instituted a “domestic gag rule” on the Title X family planning program, which prohibited grants from going to providers where clinicians divulged to their patients how to safely access abortion care. This prevented providers from being able to disclose a full range of information to their patients and severely limited the comprehensive care that patients were able to receive. On April 14th, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services proposed the rescinding of this rule. This Trump rule resulted in the Title X network’s capacity being slashed in half, and the health needs of people around the U.S. have only increased during the pandemic. Since this is a proposed rule, there will now be a public comment process, which you can find more information about in the Take Action section. The comment deadline is May 17th, 2021. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| BMHW21: Black Maternal Health, Abortion Access, and Reproductive Justice | 12 Apr 2021 | 00:32:23 | |
April 11 – 17, 2021, marks the fourth annual Black Maternal Health Week. In this bonus episode, Dr. Jamila Perritt, board certified OB/GYN and President and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health and Dr. Mishka S. Peart, OB/GYN and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health, talk to us about the importance of highlighting and discussing the disparities in abortion, contraception, and maternal health access and outcomes for Black people in the United States. There are undeniable race- and ethnicity- based disparities in maternal health outcomes in the United States. For example, maternal deaths occur more frequently among Black people than any other race or ethnicity, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) note that Black people are three to four times more likely to die of pregnancy-related causes than any other racial or ethnic group. Lack of access to quality contraception and abortion care also disproportionately impact Black communities; in fact, a recent study found that barriers to abortion contributed to up to a 38 percent increase in maternal deaths, which has a disparate impact on Black people. Medical care, access to comprehensive reproductive health services, and maternal health outcomes are certainly impacted by social inequities and racism. “Weathering”, or the phenomenon of the biological impact of stress related to being Black in America, is an effect of the systemic racism faced by the Black community in the medical system and beyond. It is vital that the U.S. medical system recognize this cyclical structure and make long-term changes that address the inherent biases in the healthcare infrastructure. The reproductive justice framework has four tenets at its core: 1) every person has a human right to determine if they have a child, and to determine the circumstances under which they give birth; 2) every person has a human right to decide if they will not have a child and to have the resources to decide if and how to prevent and end a pregnancy; 3) every person has a human right to parent the children they already have in sustainable and safe communities free from violence; and 4) every person has a human right to bodily autonomy and sexual pleasure. It is far past time that the United States begins to view and provide comprehensive reproductive health care holistically and through the lens of a reproductive justice framework. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Trans Rights are Under Attack in Several States | 06 Apr 2021 | 00:55:06 | |
LGBTQ+ people, overall, lack equal rights and access in the United States. In fact, in most of the U.S., LGBTQ+ people face discrimination in housing, credit, public accommodations, jury service, and other public arenas that don’t directly involve marriage or employment. It’s also no secret that Republicans around the country have been passing legislation for years that attacks the health and rights of transgender people. Charlotte Clymer, writer, LGBTQ+ advocate, and Director of Communications and Strategy at Catholics for Choice, talks to us about how state attacks on transgender rights are contributing to the lack of protections for LGBTQ+ people in the U.S. This year state-level anti-trans policies have fallen into three buckets: those that prevent transgender youth from receiving lifesaving, gender-affirming medical care, those that prevent transgender youth from competing in sports, and religious liberty exemptions. Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee are states that have formally passed these types of legislation so far this year. In direct opposition to these egregious attacks on LGBT health and rights, the Equality Act is a comprehensive bill that, at the national level, would ban discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in every aspect of the public square. Since the Biden administration has taken office, there have been a number of protections that have been passed to support LGBTQ+ people. Immediately, the Biden administration signed a flurry of executive orders that made it illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people within the federal government, overturn the ban on trans people in the military, and appoint a number of LGBTQ+ people to government posts. To expand upon its progress, the Biden administration should release every LGBTQ+ (and specifically, trans and non-binary) undocumented immigrant from ICE and CPB custody, ensure that incarcerated trans people maintain their rights and wellbeing, and create an LGBTQ+-specific equality commission or council, and strengthening reporting in the State Department’s international Human Rights Reports on LGBTQ+ safety around the world. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| 1 in 3 Women Experience Gender Based Violence | 23 Mar 2021 | 00:36:01 | |
Gender-based violence, or GBV, is harm perpetrated against a person’s will on the basis of their gender or gender characteristics. It is such a widespread global issue that 1 in 3 women have reported experiencing some form of gender-based violence. Gayatri Patel, Director of Gender Advocacy at CARE USA, talks to us about this universal issue.
GBV can include rape or sexual violence, domestic or intimate partner violence, human trafficking, child marriage, harassment, controlling behavior, and economic abuse, among other forms of violence. While gender-based violence is often committed against women and girls, it is important to remember that boys, men, and people of other gender identities experience gender-based violence, as well. GBV takes place in all countries, to people in all social and economic classes, and to people of all races, ethnicities, and religions. In practice, global gender-based violence looks like:
· Somewhere in the world, 1 girl every 2 seconds is married before the age of 18 · An average of 137 women are killed by a family member each day · 1 in 10 women in the European Union saying they have experienced cyber harassment since the age of 15
Conflict, natural disaster, and humanitarian situations often lead to a lack of traditional social support, disintegration of familial structures, and increased rates of stress. Combined, this phenomenon can lead to rising rates of all forms of GBV in these situations. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic increase in GBV, particularly domestic violence, intimate partner violence, child marriage, and female genital cutting. Because people’s movements are restricted due to stay-at-home measures, jobs have been lost, and schools have closed, many are trapped in a home with an abuser, have become financially dependent on their abusers, or have become an easier target of abuse.
Each survivor is different and therefore, each survivor needs different things. Examples of needs for gender-based violence survivors could include economic and job support, immediate crisis counseling, long-term psychosocial services, legal services, sexual and reproductive health services, and more.
The Biden administration is already taking action to address GBV. The administration established the White House Gender Policy Council and they are developing a national action plan on GBV, and updating the U.S. strategy to responded to global GBV. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Reproductive Rights, LGBTQ+ Rights, and the Catholic Church | 09 Mar 2021 | 00:38:46 | |
Catholics have abortions at the same rate as others in the U.S. 58% of Catholics believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 68% of Catholics in the U.S. do not want to see Roe v. Wade overturned. Jamie Manson, President of Catholics for Choice, talks to us about all of the ways that Catholicism deeply impacts the human rights of many in the United States. “Theology of the body,” a theological idea developed by Pope John Paul II, teaches that God made men and women in a specific way with specific anatomy to signal what God’s purpose for humanity, nature, and gender roles are for us. This deeply entrenched theological idea is taught widely at Catholic schools and universities around the U.S. It is this fundamental idea that underlines why the church opposes abortion, contraception, same-sex relationships and marriage, and women serving as faith leaders. While it often largely seems as if the Catholic church is mostly focused on curtailing access to abortion, that isn’t the only sexual and reproductive health issue that is impacted by the political power of the church; the Catholic church has been a leading actor in opposing birth control access, LGB issues, trans issues, refusing basic healthcare in clinical settings, and more. It is often the Catholic church that is behind cases in the Supreme Court. Still, the teachings and beliefs of the Catholic church hierarchy do not necessarily inherently reflect that living reality of Catholic practitioners. There has been a large broadening of how religious liberty is interpreted—Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrisey-Berru and Fulton v. Philadelphia are examples of court cases in which the Catholic church have expanded definitions of religious liberty in order to discriminate and refuse protections. These religious liberty extensions will be troubling not only for reproductive health and rights, but for a range of human rights issues. President Joe Biden is America’s very first pro-choice, practicing Catholic president. This is an opportunity for a person of faith to promote and protect reproductive health and rights. President Biden’s Catholic faith informs much of the administration’s policy, and Catholics for Choice calls on President Biden to state that abortion access is also a value grounded in Catholic social justice. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Want to Fight for Reproductive Health? Fight for Medicaid, Too. | 25 Jun 2024 | 00:38:27 | |
Medicaid, the largest public health insurance program for people in the United States, exists on a state-by-state basis. But how could Medicaid possibly relate to sexual and reproductive health? Fabiola De Liban, Director, Sexual and Reproductive Health, with the National Health Law Program, sits down to talk with us about what is covered under the program, what’s not covered, Medicaid’s disturbing history related to family planning, and the barriers that patients face on a day-to-day basis. Medicaid is the largest public payer of family planning, covering 75% of all family planning expenditures. It covers almost half of U.S. births, including prenatal, labor, delivery, and postpartum. Medicaid also covers prescription drugs, sterilization, breast cancer services, and some gender -affirming care services. Medicaid does not cover abortion due to the Hyde amendment. Medicaid expansion allows someone who is not pregnant or who doesn't have a child or a disability to be able to qualify to the Medicaid program. When the Affordable Care Act passed, Medicaid expansion would have gone into effect nationwide, if not for states who sued to prevent expansion. Medicaid expansion is now optional, with only 9 states having chosen to not expand. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| You’d Be Surprised How Many Sexual and Reproductive Health Issues Are Included in Bridgerton | 23 Feb 2021 | 00:42:15 | |
“Bridgerton” is a 2020 Netflix show that follows the fictional Bridgerton siblings as they seek love in Regency-era London. The first season features plots relating to maternal mortality, consent, sex education, and much, much more. Laura D. Lindberg, Principal Research Scientist for the Guttmacher Institute, talks to us about the sexual and reproductive health issues that Bridgerton explores, and the ways in which sex education today may be just as hard to access as it was in 1813 London. Issues of maternal mortality arise a few times in Bridgerton; The Duke’s mother dies after giving birth to him, while Eloise expresses anxiety to Daphne when remembering their mother’s close brush with death after giving birth to their youngest sibling. Girls and women are seen carrying the emotional weight of pregnancy and childbirth, as both were a necessary social role at the time and yet carried a very large health risk. Gender roles are also starkly explored, as gender constrained and shaped the paths that both men and women took in the show. Throughout the season, Eloise rejects her “coming out” as a debutante while proclaiming value in education and writing. Early marriage in Bridgerton underscores the ways in which women and girls could protect their virginity, while men and boys were encouraged to engage in sexual promiscuity. And, after the death of the family’s father, Anthony, the eldest son, takes over as head of the household and must make increasingly intense decisions for the Bridgerton family’s future-- which often puts him in conflict with his mother. Daphne has grown up protected in her class-defined bubble and it has kept her far from any kind of comprehensive sex education. When it becomes clear she is uninformed, she seeks knowledge about sex and marriage from her lady’s maid. Daphne becomes increasingly angry with her mother as she realizes her mother sent her out into the world without important information about sex and marriage. The Duke takes advantage of the fact that Daphne does not understand the way sex works, depending on the withdrawal method to not get her pregnant. Ultimately, Daphne discovers the Duke’s insistence that he cannot have children is a philosophical one instead of a physiological one, leading Daphne to sexually assault the Duke and engage in reproductive coercion. Bridgerton reminds us that self-managed abortion has been around for a very long time. Out of desperation, Marina unsuccessfully attempts to induce a self-managed abortion by mixing herbs into a tea. Thankfully, in the U.S. and around the world today, self-managed medication abortion is much safer and more effective. Still, it is a reminder that pregnant people want and deserve to have complete autonomy over decision-making about their bodies. Today, while some things differ from Regency-era London, access to sex education is still shockingly lacking for young people around the U.S. There has been no expansion in how many teens receive formal sex educatio For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| 100th Episode Celebration: Jennie Answers Your Questions | 09 Feb 2021 | 00:56:47 | |
This week we are doing things a little differently! To celebrate rePROs Fight Back’s 100th episode, host Jennie Wetter will be answering questions sent in by listeners. This week, sit back, relax, and get to know the rePROs Fight Back host just a bit better! For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Medication Abortion Shouldn't Require an In-Person Visit (Especially During a Pandemic!) | 26 Jan 2021 | 00:31:57 | |
Medication abortion provides safe, effective, and time-sensitive medical care to patients around the U.S. that require an abortion. Unfortunately, medication abortion faces multiple restrictions, with the Supreme Court recently ruling that patients must access the medication in-person. Especially in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, these restrictions are not only unnecessary, but blatantly dangerous. Dr. Jamila Perritt, a board-certified OBGYN and family planning specialist, and President and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health, talks to us about these restrictions and how they are impacting people’s access to basic abortion care, in and outside of the context of the pandemic. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| The Biden Administration Can Fix Title X | 19 Jan 2021 | 00:31:49 | |
Clinics that are funded by Title X provide critical family planning care to many around the U.S. This care includes pelvic exams, STD testing and treatment, cancer screenings, birth control prescription services, and more. The Trump administration’s 2019 administrative rule, sometimes referred to as the domestic gag rule, has completely gutted the Title X program Robin Summers, Vice President of Healthcare Strategy and Analysis and Senior Council at the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA), talks to us about how the Title X program has been impacted by the Trump administration’s harmful rule, and how the incoming Biden-Harris administration can repair it. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Prioritizing Reproductive and Racial Justice | 15 Jan 2021 | 00:35:17 | |
Reproductive Justice is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities. Monica Raye Simpson, Executive Director of SisterSong, Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, sits down with us to talk about how the framework of reproductive justice is deeply interwoven into events that are currently happening in the United States. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| The U.S Needs to Make it Easier for Immigrants to Access Healthcare | 12 Jan 2021 | 00:35:56 | |
Health care is a human right and yet immigrants in the US cannot receive appropriate health insurance coverage or healthcare because of their immigration status. Abbey Zhu, member of the Chicago chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF), Luisa Cuautle, activist with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice (NLIRJ) and Candace Gibson, Associate Director of Government Relations at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice sit down with us to talk about the HEAL for Immigrant Women and Families Act and how the legislation will ensure access to quality, affordable, and dependable healthcare coverage for all immigrants. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| 2021: A New Year, A New Administration, A Blueprint for Reproductive Freedom | 29 Dec 2020 | 00:56:25 | |
The the Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice (the Blueprint) lays out a comprehensive, proactive domestic and foreign policy agenda to achieve reproductive health, rights, and justice, envisioning a future that sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice advocates would like to live in. Michelle Batchelor, Vice President of Government Affairs at In Our Own Voice-- National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda and Caitlin Horrigan, Director of Global Advocacy at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund, sit down with us to discuss. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Will the U.S. Adopt a Feminist Foreign Policy? | 15 Dec 2020 | 00:30:15 | |
The International Center for Research on Women defines feminist foreign policy as “the policy of a state that defines its interactions with other states and movements in a manner that prioritizes gender equality and enshrines the human rights of women and other marginalized groups, allocates significant resources to achieve that vision and seeks, through its implementation, to disrupt racist, patriarchal and male-dominated power structures across all levers of influence, such as aid, trade, defense, diplomacy, and that this is informed by the voices of feminist groups, activists, and movements at home and abroad.” Lyric Thompson, Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy at the International Center for Research on Women, and leader of the Coalition for a Feminist Foreign Policy in the United States, sits down to talk to us about the significance of feminist foreign policy, and how it can be achieved. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| It’s Time to Talk About Infertility | 01 Dec 2020 | 00:29:36 | |
Infertility is estimated to impact 10 to 15 percent of couples in the United States, making it the most common diseases of people between the ages of 20 and 45. Frankie Robertson, with the National Birth Equity Collaborative and the Amandla Group, takes time to talk to us about the intricacies of infertility and why we need to look at it as a reproductive justice issue. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| SCOTUS with Amy Coney Barrett and the ACA and LGBTQ Rights, Oh My! | 17 Nov 2020 | 00:41:14 | |
Newly-appointed Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett has a proven track record of being a very conservative judge on issues like sexual violence, the Affordable Care Act, LGBTQ+ rights, and reproductive health and rights. In her confirmation hearing, Justice Barrett refused to answer many questions surrounding abortion, in vitro fertilization, and birth control. Caroline Reilly, legal fellow with Rewire News Group, talks to us about Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s past experience and personal views could certainly influence the future of health and rights in the United States. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Abortion Providers Share Their Reflections on a Post-Roe America | 18 Jun 2024 | 00:28:41 | |
Two years after the overturning of Roe v. Wade, abortion providers across the United States are sharing their reflections on the current state of abortion access, how to take action, and their visions for the future. Guests include: Dr. Rachel Chisausky, family medicine physician in the Northwest and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health Dr. Keemi Ereme, OB/GYN and abortion provider in Seattle, Washington and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health Dr. Miriam McQuade, abortion provider in Albuquerque, New Mexico and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health Dr. Jessica Rubino, family medicine physician and abortion care provider in Washington, D.C. and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Hero Origin Stories: Round 3 | 03 Nov 2020 | 00:37:47 | |
This week we are doing things a little differently! Long time listeners have probably heard our SRHR Hero Origin Stories podcast AND our SRHR Hero Origin Stories podcast: Round 2, where we talked to a number of amazing heroes in the field of reproductive health, rights, and justice and heard about how they began working in this space. We have reprised our most popular podcast episodes and talked to more leaders about their work, their passions, and their journeys into reproductive health for a third time! For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Wait…Trump is Expanding the Global Gag Rule Again? | 20 Oct 2020 | 00:35:53 | |
The Global Gag Rule has interfered with HIV prevention and contraceptive access and has increased unintended pregnancy and abortion rates. The Trump administration has engaged in unprecedented expansion of this rule, endangering the health and lives of millions around the world and is looking to further expand who the gag rule applies to. Beirne Roose-Snyder, Director of Public Policy at the Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE) talks to us about the continuation of these harmful expansions even though 70 percent of Americans oppose the Global Gag Rule. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||
| Sorry State Dept, You Can't Choose Human Rights A La Carte | 06 Oct 2020 | 00:46:50 | |
The Commission on Unalienable Rights was convened by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The commission has championed religious freedom and property as human rights, but not reproductive health, LGBTQ+ wellbeing, immigrant rights, and more. Amanda Klasing, Interim Co-Director at the Women’s Rights Division at the Human Rights Watch and Tarah Demant, Director of Gender, Sexuality, and Identity Program at Amnesty International USA sit down to talk to us about this commission’s most recent report and how it is harmful for global human rights. For more information, check out Pantsuit Politics: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/s/podcast Follow Us on Social: Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store | |||