Spring 2024 Sneak Peek: Let Women Die?

PUBLISHED 3/6/2024 by

In the latest print issue of Ms., reporter Belle Taylor-McGhee digs into a pending Supreme Court case brought by the Justice Department against Idaho on behalf of patients who need care at hospital emergency rooms due to pregnancy complications, arguing that the state’s law banning abortion at all stages of pregnancy violates the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA. The Supreme Court’s decision, expected in June or July, will determine the fate of women suffering potentially fatal pregnancy complications and will have life-or-death ramifications for women in any state with extreme abortion bans in place.

Here’s some of what else you’ll find within the pages of the upcoming Spring 2024 issue of Ms. magazine: how to mobilize men in service of progressive, liberal and feminist ideals; the importance of the ongoing battle against gerrymandering; Dr. Sima Samar on the status of women in Afghanistan, and more.

Join the Ms. community today and you’ll get issues delivered straight to your mailbox!

Lost Women: Harriet H. Robinson, An American Mill Girl 

PUBLISHED 3/6/2024 by

Reclaiming the forgotten histories of women was the driving force behind Ms.‘ monthly column “Lost Women.” This Women’s History Month, we’re reviving the iconic series—diving into the archives to make these histories more accessible to our new age of Ms. readers.

This week: Harriet Robinson captured and preserved the fleeting golden age for female factory laborers—a unique period when the daughters of New England led the way in the transformation of America … and of themselves. 

Federal Judge Rules Against Pregnant Workers in Texas

PUBLISHED 3/5/2024 by

Texas AG Ken Paxton sued the Biden administration last year over a government funding package that passed largely by proxy votes because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funding package, passed in December 2022, included the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which protects accommodations for pregnant employees and allows workers to sue employers for failing to do so.

Paxton argued the Constitution requires a physical majority of members to pass legislation. Since a majority voted on the funding package by proxy, Paxton said it was unenforceable. Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas agreed with Paxton’s understanding of a quorum—ruling the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act unenforceable against the state government and its agencies.

When Every Miscarriage Is a Murder Scene, Poor Women Pay the Highest Price

PUBLISHED 3/5/2024 by

The Alabama Supreme Court recently shocked the nation when it held that the word “child” includes frozen embryos. Treating an embryo as the equivalent of a child upends the fertility industry, as it threatens to end in vitro fertilization (IVF) services and puts the status of embryos already in storage in serious question.

While these implications are important to untangle, the brunt of the effects of fetal personhood will fall not upon families with the resources to undergo IVF, but rather on poor and non-white women. Every decision made by a pregnant person could be second-guessed by the government. Every step outside of the most risk-averse approach to pregnancy puts the pregnant person under the microscope of the state.

From The Vault: Joan Little and The Dialectics of Rape (June 1975)

PUBLISHED 3/5/2024 by

“A little more than 100 years ago … rape served not only to further [the Black woman’s] oppression but also as a means of terrorizing the entire Black community. It placed brutal emphasis on the fact that Black slaves were indeed the property of the white master. … The social incentive given to rape is woven into the logic of the institutions of this society. It is an extremely efficient means of keeping women in a state of fear of rape, or of the possibility of it.”

( For more ground-breaking stories like this, order 50 YEARS OF Ms.: THE BEST OF THE PATHFINDING MAGAZINE THAT IGNITED A REVOLUTION (Alfred A. Knopf)—a collection of the most audacious, norm-breaking coverage Ms. has published.)

Looking Back and Forging Ahead: Three Feminist Writers on Women’s History, Feminist Media and Intergenerational Engagement

PUBLISHED 3/5/2024 by

Friends of Ms. gathered last month to discuss two extraordinary anthologies, Blackbirds Singing: Inspiring Black Women’s Speeches from the Civil War to the Twenty-First Century by Janet Deward Bell and 50 Years of Ms.: The Best of the Pathfinding Magazine That Ignited a Revolution. Both give voice to extraordinary women throughout history who fought to define and demand equality.

Reconstructing the Roberts Court

PUBLISHED 3/5/2024 by

The Supreme Court will soon make monumental decisions on presidential immunity, racial gerrymandering and abortion pills that stand to harm marginalized people and reinforce the privileges of wealth and whiteness.

Perhaps it is unremarkable that an institution dominated by white men since its inception struggles to be inclusive. But the Roberts Court’s consideration of the Reconstruction Amendments—the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution—is especially alarming.

The Case for Safe Abortions for Refugee Women

PUBLISHED 3/4/2024 by

On the eve of International Women’s Day, President Biden will deliver his State of the Union address. Kate Cox, a Texas woman denied access to abortion to terminate an unviable pregnancy that threatened her health, will attend as First Lady Jill Biden’s guest. Cox was able to travel to another state to access a safe abortion. While she should never have been put in that position in the first place, thankfully, she was able to get care.

Globally, options for women who are refugees are often significantly more limited. That’s why Congress must provide increased funding for international family planning programs, without any new restrictions.

Harnessing Women’s Power for a Stronger Democracy: Solutions Summit to Take Place March 5-7

PUBLISHED 3/4/2024 by

I urge everyone who cares about the future of our country to attend the Democracy Solutions Summit from 3 to 5 p.m. EST, March 5-7. This three-day virtual event is free for all to attend. Register here!

It’s more than an event; it’s an opportunity to be part of the solution. By supporting women experts and advocating for the reforms that will make a difference, we can build a democracy that truly represents us all. It is time for women to lead the conversation on American democracy. Women possess a wealth of expertise and a unique understanding of the challenges we face in the political arena. Our perspectives on solutions warrant serious consideration as we strive to build a more representative democracy.