rePROs Fight Back – Details, episodes & analysis

Texas, long at the forefront of restrictive abortion policy in the U.S., has passed a new law (which goes into effect in early December) which would take state law and the already in-place abortion ban (SB 8) and apply it beyond its borders. Jessica Waters, Senior Scholar in Residence at the School of Public Affairs at American University, sits down with us to talk about Texas’ new law restricting telehealth medication abortion, an incredibly common and safe method of care.  

Specifically, the law prohibits the manufacturing and distribution of mifepristone in the state, and outlines the inability to mail, transport, deliver, prescribe, or provide abortion-inducing drugs to anyone in the state. Currently, pregnant people in Texas cannot receive legal abortion care, so they have relied upon out-of-state abortion care. This new law, though, allows for anyone to sue an out-of-state company or medical professional which provides a person in Texas with mifepristone, even if that doctor or company is in a state where abortion is legal. This law is in direct tension with the shield laws that protect against this very scenario. This will likely create a chilling effect on doctors and abortion funds out-of-state. 

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

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November 12, 2025, is #ThxBirthControl Day-- a day to celebrate the multiple methods of contraceptive care that allow people to live their fullest lives and reach their dreams and goals. Monica Edwards, Senior Manager, Public Policy at Power to Decide and Tara Mancini, Public Policy Director at Power to Decide, sit down to talk with us about the magic of #ThxBirthControl Day, as well as the recent attacks that threaten our access to the contraception that helps shape our lives.

Over 90% of adults agree that birth control should be legal. Three out of four voters believe that it should be easier to access. And nine and ten women of reproductive age have used birth control at some point in their life. Yet birth control faces ceaseless attacks including misinformation and disinformation, the creeping reclassification of contraception as ‘abortifacients,’ and the withholding of funds from Title X grantees. Join the #ThxBirthControl online campaign to share your story and fight back against these attacks.

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

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Starting in her teenage years, Kate Helen Downey’s menstrual cycle was extremely painful. In her adult life, she received an endometriosis diagnosis, which can cause severe menstrual pain. Kate, host and producer of the podcast CRAMPED, sits down with us to share about her experience and encourage everyone to talk about their period pain. 

Kate’s podcast, CRAMPED, seeks to explore more about why the medical system—and all of us—know next to nothing about period pain. Many people learn about menstruation through movies and TV, where a young girl getting her period for the first time is the primary representation of menstrual health. Rarely do we see reliable depiction of the pain that comes with menstruation. Talking openly with your friends and loved ones about the experience of menstruating can help us destigmatize periods, understand our own pain, understand other people’s pain, comfort one another, and heal.

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

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The Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice is a federal policy agenda that briefs every incoming administration on how to expand and protect domestic and global sexual and reproductive healthcare. Caitlin Horrigan, Senior Director of Global Advocacy for Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Candace Gibson, Director of Government Relations at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, sit down to talk with us about the 2023 Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice and how it reflects the overturning of Roe v. Wade.  

 The blueprint outlines policy actions and leadership actions—including executive actions that can be taken by the President and asks for government agencies, including asks from the Department of Homeland Security, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Links

Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice on Twitter

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice on Facebook

Planned Parenthood Federation of America on Twitter

Planned Parenthood Federation of America on Facebook

Take Action

 First and foremost, follow NLIRJ on Twitter and Facebook and PPFA on Twitter and Facebook.

Amplify the blueprint and the policy agenda it lays out in your communities and platforms. Share on social media, share with friends, family, and policy makers, and send to related (and non-related!) organizations.

Reach out to local, state, and federal elected officials and stress the importance of achieving the vision of SRHR for all. You can contact the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121. 

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

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Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

The needs of LGBTQI+ people to live safe, healthy, and fulfilling lives are as important as the are universally necessary. Vivian Topping, Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement at the Equality Federation sits down to talks with us about achieving LGBTQI+ justice, what a just world for LGBTQI+ folks looks like, and some hopes for the new year.

To support and enhance the lives of those in the LGBTQI+ community, people need access to healthcare, job training, stable housing, and more. Unfortunately, constant legislative attacks to LGBTQI+ people’s rights and safety means that the much-needed progress on these core areas is put on the backburner while acute and dangerous fires are put out. Anti-LGBTQI+ and anti-trans ideology and messaging from far-right groups can be so severe that it seeps into a variety of political and advocacy circles across the spectrum of issue areas. 

The good news? Over the past year, many states have passed transgender sanctuary laws, while 491 anti-trans bills have also been defeated. As we head into 2024, be on the lookout for continued extremism and misinformation, and also note that loud and out-spoken community resistance. 

Links

Equality Federation on Twitter

Equality Federation on Facebook

Take Action Items

Follow the Equality Federation on Twitter and Facebook and stay up-to-date on their work.

Find your local Equality Federation partner, nearby events, and other ways to get involved here! When state equality groups and LGBTQI+ communities are asking you to show up—whether at protests, voting, calling representatives, etc., be there.

If you can, you can also give to your local LGBTQI+ organizations, especially through a reoccurring donation.

rePROs Fight Back has been named a finalist in two categories in the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards. The winners of these awards are chosen by support from our community. You can “celebrate” or vote for rePROs Fight Back here: Human and Civil Rights Awareness and Media Awards and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Awareness and Media. Finalists can be celebrated online from December 5th to December 21st at Celebrate.Anthemawards.com. 

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

Even years before the overturning of Roe v. Wade, reproductive health and rights organizations were noticing that their abortion content posts were being removed, suspended, shadow banned, flagged, and subject to advertising suspension. Jane Eklund, Tech and Reproductive Rights Fellow at Amnesty International USA, sits down to talk with us about abortion content digital suppression on social media platforms.

Across social media platforms, abortion-related content is often removed or interfered with in some way even though it does not violate the social media platform’s community guidelines. This can lead to decreased engagement, reach, and visibility for content related to abortion and that is often posted by sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice organizations. Digital platforms have also become spaces were criminalization has increased; police have seized Facebook messages and Google searches to prosecute people for searching for and obtaining  abortion care.

Links

Amnesty International USA on Facebook

Amnesty International USA on Twitter

 Digital Defense Fund

Take Action

First and foremost, follow Amnesty International on Facebook and Twitter. 

Follow reproductive health and rights on social media, including their back up accounts. Plan C, Women on Web, and Shout Your Abortion have very helpful information. Like, share, and interact with their content to increase their reach. Support digital campaigns from reproductive health and rights organizations, as well. 

Make sure you talk about this issue—both abortion and abortion content suppression online. Suppression is silence, which makes space for stigmatization.

rePROs Fight Back has been named a finalist in two categories in the 3rdAnnual Anthem Awards. The winners of these awards are chosen by support from our community. You can “celebrate” or vote for rePROs Fight Back here: Human and Civil Rights Awareness and Media Awards and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Awareness and Media. Finalists can be celebrated online from December 5th to December 21st at Celebrate.Anthemawards.com. 

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

As the holiday season continues and people sit down with their family and friends around dinner tables and fireplaces, personal question and general conversations about current events—some related to sexual and reproductive health and rights and transgender health and rights—may arise. Erin Matson, Co-founder, President, and CEO of Reproaction, sits down to talk with us about how to have difficult conversations, when to engage, and how to build up your boundaries during conversations, confrontations, and questions. 

Links

Reproaction on Twitter

Reproaction on Facebook

Erin Matson on Twitter

Plan C
Abortionfinder.org
Ineedana.com
Repro Legal Helpline
Repro Legal Defense Fund
Digital Defense Fund

Take Action

Follow Reproaction on Twitter and Facebook and stay up-to-date on their work. You can also find Erin Matson on Twitter here.

If you want to show that you are an ally or help challenge stigma, you can get some merchandise like this on Bonfire and show your support!  

Remember, engage in conversations to your own comfortability. Sometimes, we must protect our own mental and emotional wellbeing, safety, and security. 

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

From the history of how the rePROs Fight Back podcast began to some behind-the-scenes sneak peaks, Tarah Demant, Interim National Director of Programs, Advocacy, and Government Affairs at Amnesty International USA, asks host Jennie Wetter a collection of ask me anything (AMA) questions.

Links

Amnesty International USA on Twitter
Amnesty International USA on Facebook
Tarah Demant on Twitter
Jennie Wetter on Twitter
Plan C
Abortionfinder.org
Ineedana.com
Repro Legal Helpline
Repro Legal Defense Fund
Digital Defense Fund

Take Action

If you need an abortion, check out this website to find the clinic closest to you.

Support your local abortion fund! Find your local abortion fund via the National Network of Abortion Funds. 

Follow Tarah Demant on Twitter and follow Amnesty International USA on Twitter and Facebook

As the holidays approach, remember to have conversations with your family members to your own comfortability. Feel free to push back in a big or small way. You can also wear abortion fund merchandise, like this, to break the stigma!

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

November 15, 2023, is #ThxBirthControl Day! Everyone deserves access to an array of birth control methods that works best for their body, their life, and their goals. Rachel Fey, Vice President of Policy and Strategic Partnerships at Power to Decide, sits down to talk with us about the importance of accessible contraception and why we should keep ab eye out for attacks to birth control.

Misinformation and disinformation about birth control has been circulating for a long time and continues to spread—particularly since the Dobbs decision. Supreme Court justices and Congresspeople have recently questioned the constitutionality and need for affordable and accessible birth control, which means now, more than ever, is the time to rally in support for this basic, necessary health care. Join us with Power to Decide in saying #ThxBirthControl!

Links

Power to Decide on Twitter

Power to Decide on Facebook

#ThxBirthControl Merchandise

#ThxBirthControl Toolkit

Power to Decide’s Take Action Center

Contraceptive Deserts

Advancing Contraceptive Access Toolkit

The Right to Contraception: State and Federal Actions, Misinformation, and the Courts

Take Action

Follow Power to Decide on Twitter and Facebook.

Join in on #ThxBirthControl Day! Find social media toolkits, merchandise, and more information on this day here. You can find Power to Decide’s take action center here—sign up to stay informed about their work and urge Congress to support related legislation.

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!

Gun violence prevention and domestic violence are inextricably linked. And today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case, U.S. v Rahimi, that could potentially determine the constitutionality of a gun violence prevention law that has saved millions of lives. Sabrina Talukder, Director of the Women’s Initiative at the Center for American Progress, sits down to talk with us about this upcoming Supreme Court case and its implications for those experiencing domestic violence.  

When there is a firearm in the home during a domestic violence incident, the risk of death increases by 500 percent. And in 2017, over 5.9 million women reported being shot by a gun by an intimate partner at some point in their life. A 1996 law prevented those with domestic violence records from attaining a firearm—and the law has been incredibly effective. But adherence to originalism in the Supreme Court may discard that law and put the health and lives of domestic abuse survivors at risk.

Links

Center for American Progress Women on Twitter (they will be live Tweeting the case today)

Center for American Progress on Twitter

Center for American Progress on Facebook

The Supreme Court Case United States v. Rahimi Underscores the Ugly Truth About Originalism and Women

Take Action

Make space for survivors who are telling their stories and listen to their experiences. 

You can follow Center for American progress on Twitter and Facebook to keep up-to-date on their gun violence prevention work.

Read more about the concept of Originalism here.

For more information, check out Boom! Lawyered: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/boom-lawyered/ 

Support the show

Follow Us on Social:
Twitter: @rePROsFightBack
Instagram: @reprosfb
Facebook: rePROs Fight Back
Bluesky: @reprosfightback.bsky.social

Buy rePROs Merch: Bonfire store

Email us: jennie@reprosfightback.com
Rate and Review on Apple Podcast

Thanks for listening & keep fighting back!