Author: Ava Slocum

Ava Slocum is the fact-checking fellow and a former editorial intern for Ms. originally from Los Angeles. Now she lives in New York, where she's a current senior and English major at Columbia University. She is especially interested in abortion politics, reproductive rights, the criminal legal system and gender-based violence. She's available at aslocum@msmagazine.com.

Our Abortion Stories: ‘I Have the Privilege to Live in a State Where I Am Safe’

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“If she could have put off the baby for two more years, she could have saved up a nest egg and created her family the way she wanted. Instead, she was trapped with a baby too soon.”

Abortions are sought by a wide range of people for many different reasons. There is no single story. Telling stories of then and now shows how critical abortion has been and continues to be for women and girls. (Share your abortion story by emailing myabortionstory@msmagazine.com.)

“Seven more days. To find out what is happening inside my body. What is poisoning my body. Starving my body. Starving my life of joy and laughter.”

This Feminist T-Shirt Initiative Is Blending Graphic Design with Abortion Justice

In the midst of Title X funding cuts to reproductive healthcare and antiabortion extremist attacks on clinics, the abortion rights movement needs as much visibility as it can get.

The United States for Abortion, a reproductive justice design initiative, lets supporters literally wear their support on their sleeve with pro-choice T-shirt designs sourced from independent designers across the country. The ongoing project—which just announced 10 new designs—is planning to incorporate designs from all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Indigenous Native nations, working at the intersection of graphic design and social justice.

One hundred percent of all proceeds from the T-shirts go to the National Network of Abortion Funds.

Republican Representatives Are Refusing to Meet With Their Constituents, So Democrats Are Doing it For Them

As voters in all 50 states feel the effects of federal layoffs, rising prices and cuts to social services—part of a far-right agenda that no one voted for—clips of constituents confronting their representatives are going viral. In response, the National Republican Congressional Committee, chaired by Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), has advised Republicans in Congress to stop holding in-person town halls with constituents.

Now Democrats are heading to Republican districts where the representative is conspicuously absent—including Hudson’s district in Alamance County, N.C., which in 2024 swung for Trump over Kamala Harris 53-47.

“If you’re here, and you voted for Trump in the past, my message is simple: I’m sorry you were lied to, but welcome to the team,” said Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.).

War on Women Report: Trump Slashes Sexual Violence Prevention; GOP Targets Teens’ Repro Rights; Nebraska Abortion Funeral Bill Threatens Miscarriage Care

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MAGA Republicans are back in the White House, and Project 2025 is their guide—the right-wing plan to turn back the clock on women’s rights, remove abortion access, and force women into roles as wives and mothers in the “ideal, natural family structure.” We know an empowered female electorate is essential to democracy. That’s why day after day, we stay vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. We are watching, and we refuse to go back. This is the War on Women Report.

Since our last report:
—Republicans in Indiana have gotten rid of a requirement for schools to teach about consent in sex education classes.
—Some good news out of Georgia: Prosecutors have dropped all charges against 24-year-old Selena Chandler-Scott after the national backlash that came when they arrested her after her miscarriage.
—On Saturday, April 5, over 1,200 demonstrations took place nationwide to protest the recent policies and actions of Donald Trump and Elon Musk.
—Legislators in Nebraska are advancing a bill that would require abortion providers to bury or cremate fetal remains and embryonic tissue after an abortion, leaning into fetal personhood arguments.

… and more.

The Casualties of Title X Cuts: Cancer Screenings, Fertility Treatments and Sex Ed

The Trump administration earlier this month cut more than $65 million in federal funding for family planning under Title X, the program signed into law by President Richard Nixon that has supported comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services—including contraception, cancer screenings, infertility treatments, pregnancy care and STI testing—for low-income Americans since 1970. The cuts will impact dozens of clinics nationwide, including nine Planned Parenthood affiliates, and leave seven states without any Title X funding—to say nothing of other funding cuts and freezes to social services like Social Security and Medicaid.

In March, Nourbese Flint, president of the national abortion justice organization All* Above All, wrote a piece for Ms. about Republicans’ proposed cuts to Medicaid, which would strip healthcare from millions of Americans, including 40 percent of all pregnant women in the United States. Last week, I spoke with her about the Title X freeze on reproductive healthcare and the long-term effects of these funding cuts, which will put infant and maternal healthcare even more in jeopardy.

The War on Women Report: Women Jailed for Miscarriages, Dragged from Town Halls, and Denied Healthcare

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MAGA Republicans are back in the White House, and Project 2025 is their guide—the right-wing plan to turn back the clock on women’s rights, remove abortion access, and force women into roles as wives and mothers in the “ideal, natural family structure.” We know an empowered female electorate is essential to democracy. That’s why day after day, we stay vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. We are watching, and we refuse to go back. This is the War on Women Report.

Since our last report:
—At a town hall in Idaho, men from a private security firm grabbed Teresa Borrenpohl and forcibly dragged her from the room.
—Georgia relaunched a new maternal mortality committee, but will not reveal who the new members are.
—In a win for Montana, a district court permanently blocked multiple restrictions that would have effectively eliminated abortion access for most patients on Medicaid.

… and more.

Black Faith Leaders Organize 40-Day ‘Fast’ from Target During Lent, Protesting DEI Cuts

In late January, Target announced an end to its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) program in response to external political pressures and as a preemptive measure to avoid potential legal or financial repercussions under the Trump administration’s executive orders cutting DEI from the federal government.

Now, in the season of Lent, Black faith leaders are calling for a 40-day “fast” from Target, urging people to boycott the retail giant to protest its caving to the federal government’s anti-diversity rhetoric. So far, more than 100,000 shoppers—many involved with Black churches—have joined the pledge to abstain from shopping at Target for 40 days. Target stock is already down 57 percent.

War on Women Report: ‘Fetal Personhood’ Bill Introduced in Congress; Trump’s Antiabortion and Pro-Project 2025 Cabinet

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MAGA Republicans are back in the White House, and Project 2025 is their guide—the right-wing plan to turn back the clock on women’s rights, remove abortion access, and force women into roles as wives and mothers in the “ideal, natural family structure.” We know an empowered female electorate is essential to democracy. That’s why day after day, we stay vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. We are watching, and we refuse to go back. This is the War on Women Report.

Since our last report:
—A judge in Indiana has temporarily ruled to protect doctors from being forced to share abortion records with the government.
—Idaho became the sixth state to consider murder charges for abortion patients.
—U.S. District Judge Adam B. Abelson temporarily halted the Trump administration’s termination of DEI programs.

… and more.

‘Hold Your Money’: Economic Blackouts Gain Momentum in Protest of Corporate and Government Policies

A grassroots movement is calling for a nationwide 24-hour economic blackout on Friday, Feb. 28, urging Americans to boycott major corporations and use cash at small businesses to protest corporate and government influence. The action is part of a broader wave of spending protests, including ongoing boycotts targeting companies that have rolled back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

These economic protests coincide with growing dissatisfaction with the Trump administration, as approval ratings drop and demonstrations against its policies—such as cuts to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and proposed Medicaid reductions—gain traction nationwide. With low-income voters playing a key role in Trump’s base, the administration’s economic policies are fueling both resistance and debate.