Drawing on archival and contemporary materials, a recent Tulane University exhibit highlights a long, interconnected history of reproductive rights, health and justice advocacy in Louisiana—linking past struggles to ongoing efforts across the Gulf South.
Despite having some of the most restrictive laws and among the worst reproductive health outcomes in the nation, Louisiana has a long history of reproductive rights and justice advocacy that spans religious, racial and cultural lines. A recent archival exhibit hosted by the Newcomb Institute at Tulane University showcased physical and digital archival collections at Tulane, along with personal and organizational records from community partners, documenting a history of activism from the 20th century to today in Louisiana and the broader Gulf South. The exhibit was part of a larger project of Tulane’s School of Liberal Arts, which hosts a series of seminars on reproductive justice in the Gulf South.
By placing items from the historical archives alongside materials from current community organizations, the exhibit offered a reminder of how long Louisianans have fought to expand and defend reproductive rights and justice within the state.
Focusing on the past and the present, the local and the national, the exhibit emphasized the role of activism in the region, as well as the consequences of restrictive laws. Articles from the Times Picayune and items from the papers of second-wave feminists described the realities of pre-Roe Louisiana, as well as the evolving strategies of the antiabortion movement after Roe.
Examples from Ms. magazine showcased how feminists from the Gulf South were making national news.
Materials from Renee Bracey Sherman’s personal collection, including a copy of the magazine Our World, revealed how Black women discussed safety and abortion care as early as the 1940s.
Student research assistants also contributed analyses of a pre-Roe Tulane University and New Orleans. The Tulane student newspaper, The Hullabaloo, and other campus publications showed the active presence of the Clergy Consultation Service pre-Roe, while an undergraduate research paper documented the untimely death of a student named June Wall due to complications arising from an underground abortion procedure in 1963.
After Roe, the student newspaper reveals a flurry of student-led initiatives for everything from sex education workshops, co-ed dormitories, HIV/AIDS awareness and access to reproductive healthcare at campus health services.
Women in Louisiana of all racial, religious and cultural backgrounds have fought to keep abortion access since Roe. They formed interfaith and multiracial coalitions in the 1990s to successfully halt abortion restrictions in the state. Organizations like the National Council of Jewish Women, Catholics for a Free Choice and the Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights (RCAR) formed state and local chapters to fight for full access to reproductive care, which they saw as the most humane approach to protecting women’s lives and whole health.
In the 21st century, advocacy groups like Lift Louisiana have continued to challenge restrictive laws and advocate for gender equity legislation, including the 2022 law that repealed taxes on both period products and diapers within the state.
The exhibit also documented related efforts to improve maternal and infant health, protect the rights of sex workers, and expand comprehensive sex education to K–12 schools in New Orleans. One set of items, an “Infant Ready Kit,” donated to the exhibit by Birthmark Doulas, shows how organizations like Birthmark work to help families feed and care for infants during disasters such as hurricanes. Essential items like breastmilk storage bags, feeding cups, sanitizer wipes, LED lights, cooler bags and educational materials are included in emergency kits to ensure safe feeding practices during emergencies.
Bringing attendees into the present, the exhibit also included a listening station where guests could hear stories collected from Louisianans by Abortion in America, a national post-Dobbs abortion storytelling effort that got its start in this state.
Listeners had the opportunity to hear from a wide range of perspectives including a pair of Baptist ministers who discussed how their relationships with their wives and a close reading of the Bible led them toward compassion and support for women’s full access to reproductive care, including abortion.
Other stories allowed visitors to personally connect with their Louisiana neighbors like Nancy Davis and Kaitlyn Joshua, who bravely shared how highly restrictive reproductive policies had significantly impacted their overall personal health and wellbeing.
No single exhibit can provide a comprehensive picture of this work over time. Yet even with this necessarily partial view, it is clear from the archival material that feminists and reproductive, sexual, and maternal health advocates have labored in both overt and hidden ways over the last century to protect the rights of women, girls and other marginalized groups in Louisiana.
In connecting the past to the present, this exhibit conveys a powerful message of caution and hope. While Louisiana residents continue to face significant challenges, there has been an unbroken chain of fierce advocates fighting for reproductive health and justice for women and families to this day.
The message is clear: The status of reproductive rights and justice in Louisiana is not fixed or static; it can be reformed again, just as it has been throughout history. Louisiana’s unique past reveals it to be both a laboratory for strategic coalition building and activism, as well as a crucial frontline in the ongoing struggle for bodily autonomy and reproductive justice.
Editor’s note: The Ms. Magazine Archive—now fully digitized and available through ProQuest—offers searchable, cover-to-cover access to every issue of Ms. from its founding in 1972 to today, preserving more than five decades of feminist journalism, activism and cultural history. Readers can explore original reporting, essays and artwork in high-resolution format through participating public and university libraries. Ask your local or campus librarian about access. To stay updated on new teaching tools, workshops and events marking the launch of the archive, sign up here. For questions, further information or to request a free trial, contact Karon Jolna, Ph.D., at kjolna@msmagazine.com.
