I Refused to Let Texas’ Abortion Ban Decide My Life. Other Women Aren’t So Lucky.

The following is Madysyn Anderson’s personal story, as told to Courier Dallas:

“SB 8 became Texas law on Sept. 1, and I found out about my pregnancy just a couple of weeks later. I didn’t want an unwanted pregnancy to prevent me from completing the biggest achievement in my life thus far. I decided that I wanted to share my experience with abortion and be an educational resource.

“Unless our country gets a reality check about who we elect to office and we educate ourselves on their positions, we women have no hope of deciding whether we want to start a family or not—or if we want to carry a rapist’s child. We stand no chance unless we fight for what we believe in.”

‘We Must Use Every Tool at Our Disposal’: Abortion’s Legal Landscape With Center for Reproductive Rights and Global Justice Center Attorneys

Kyleigh Thurman and Kelsie Norris-De La Cruz were both diagnosed with a nonviable ectopic pregnancy—a condition that can kill the patient if not treated promptly. Despite a clear diagnosis of an ectopic pregnancy from their physicians, both were repeatedly turned away from two hospitals.

In Thurman and Norris-De La Cruz’s cases, the Center for Reproductive Rights is asking the federal government to enforce the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which requires hospitals to provide stabilizing care—including abortions—to patients with emergency medical conditions. However, the Supreme Court recently dismissed Moyle v. United States, confusing reproductive rights supporters who followed the case closely.

What happens now? What’s the broader state of abortion care? What other significant cases are making their way through the courts? How should we be fighting back? Ms. spoke to attorneys Jaime Gher of the Global Justice Center and Marc Hearron of the Center Reproductive Rights to find out.

Why This Nevada Mom Is Fighting to Protect Abortion Rights in Nevada’s Constitution

When Laura Campbell was 27 weeks pregnant, she received heartbreaking news at an ultrasound checkup: Her much-wanted baby no longer had a heartbeat. Campbell, who already had one child, was stunned. Her pregnancy had been healthy and uneventful until that moment. Nevertheless, Campbell is still full of praise for the nurse and the OB-GYN who cared for her during the emergency delivery of her stillborn baby. 

“It just makes me sad and mad that not everybody gets that… because of where they live and it’s not fair. There are nurses out there who can’t do that for their patients because they could be prosecuted,” said Campbell.

This Election, It’s Women’s Choice

After the Supreme Court’s unprecedented 2022 decision to revoke a constitutional right, abortion changed the course of elections for two years running. As the nation approaches the first presidential election of the post-Roe era, Democrats—who are fielding a woman presidential candidate who champions abortion rights—are banking on the issue to bolster them again.

Many public polls predict it won’t. But are these polls right? Not so much, say numerous polling experts.

(This article originally appears in the Fall 2024 issue of Ms. Join the Ms. community today and you’ll get issues delivered straight to your mailbox!)

What’s Old Is New: How Can New Voices Advance the Realm of Education?

Emily Wilson, a classicist and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, made history as the first woman to translate Homer’s The Odyssey into English. Her groundbreaking translations offer a fresh lens through which to view these ancient texts.

Wilson’s work challenges long-held interpretations and underscores the value of diverse voices in literature—especially as U.S. education is under fire by conservative politicians and organizations.

It’s Not Easy to Be the First … or the Thousandth

As I’ve answered interviewers’ questions, I’ve noticed myself saying things like: “I was surprised how difficult it was to be a woman in seminary, even at a seminary that’s fully committed to supporting women in ministry.” I’ve come to realize that of course it’s still difficult to be a woman in these spaces. Of course it’s still hard—even after many decades, even after hundreds or even thousands of women have walked this path before me—because the reality is that the roads were not built with us in mind. They were not shaped to fit us. So many different intricacies and twists and turns and building materials went into making these paths, all of which are more difficult to navigate for those who were not their original intended walkers.

New College of Florida Destroys Gender Studies Books

On Jan. 6, 2023, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis orchestrated a rightwing takeover of New College of Florida in Sarasota, the state’s only public liberal honors arts college. DeSantis appointed six new members to the college’s board of trustees who promptly voted to eliminate the diversity, equity and inclusion office and the gender studies program.

On August 15, administration at New College of Florida in Sarasota destroyed hundreds of books that had been housed in the Gender and Diversity Center on campus, placing them in a huge dumpster for disposal. 

Keeping Score: Court Blocks Student Loan Relief Plan; Former N.Y. Cop Sentenced 10 Weekends in Jail After Child Rape; Trump’s ‘Tampon Tim’ Jab Backfires

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in this biweekly roundup.

This week: Kamala Harris reaffirmed her candidacy for president at the DNC; Republican-appointed judges strike down Biden’s student loan relief plan; a new law bans women from speaking in public in Afghanistan; working moms earn just 71 cents per dollar earned by dads; understanding the orgasm gap; gold-medalist boxer Imane Khelif fights back against racist and sexist abuse; new reproductive rights bills signed into law in Illinois; and more.