More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Abortion bans are having a devastating effect on rape survivors who become pregnant. In the 18 months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, there were more than 500,000 reported and unreported rapes in the 14 states that have outlawed abortion throughout pregnancy, resulting in 65,000 rape-related pregnancies.
Of all the states, Texas had the highest number of rape-related pregnancies: 26,313—which was 45 percent of the total rape-related pregnancies in the 14 states evaluated.
In April, the nation’s highest Court will hear a pair of cases that will determine whether the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) preempts state laws that impede emergency abortions needed to protect the health of pregnant people even if they are not on the brink of death.
Both of these cases have ties to the main anti-abortion zealots that helped overturn Roe: Leonard Leo and Alliance Defending Freedom.
Abortion is currently banned in 14 states and highly restricted in an additional 10, and the average American lives 86 miles from an abortion provider. This leaves many pregnant people with the complex task of traveling across state lines—spending substantial amounts of money and time—to receive essential medical care.
Ahead of the Roe anniversary, a panel of Senate Democrats and activists discussed a range of issues related to abortion rights—including state abortion bans and their desire to pass the Women’s Protection Act to restore abortion rights nationwide.
“It’s so frustrating that we are no closer to giving doctors the clarity they need to help patients like me or Kate,” said Amanda Zurawski when the Texas Supreme Court denied Kate Cox an abortion. “People are left living in fear of prison or losing their livelihood.”
In Ohio, a grand jury is deciding whether to charge Brittany Watts—a woman who went to the hospital twice for care when she was miscarrying, was sent home twice, and miscarried in her bathroom. She could face jail time for “abuse of a corpse,” because fetal parts were found clogged in her toilet. Watts’ case is a chilling preview of what could come: Miscarriage criminalized in myriad ways. And now, the Fifth Circuit is holding that emergency rooms do not have to provide life-saving abortions—further ensuring that women with dangerous miscarriages will simply be sent home and left to manage on their own.
At the heart of the ‘pro-life’ movement is the idea that women are put on this earth for subservience. And so this is the plan: Force women to carry pregnancies against their will.
The Biden administration reminded hospitals of their obligation to perform life-saving abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act after the overturn of Roe v. Wade. Texas sued, arguing it was an overstep that mandated abortions.
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A Texas Supreme Court ruling that forced Kate Cox to leave the state to terminate a nonviable pregnancy attracted the ire of even some Republicans, including Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. And this week, 51 businesses signed onto an amicus brief in support of the 22 women suing Texas over its abortion bans, expressing difficulty in attracting employees and doing business in the state.
Abortion and women’s rights will be determining factors in the 2024 elections. Candidates who don’t take that into account will face severe headwinds—because unfortunately, stories like Cox’s are just going to keep happening. And voters aren’t turning a blind eye.
The Supreme Court of Texas notched itself into a troubling tapestry of U.S. legal history when it overturned a district court ruling that allowed Kate Cox, a 31-year-old Texas woman, to end her nonviable pregnancy. The state is committed to forcing Cox to remain pregnant, against her will and medical recommendations.
Women in Texas are living in a new Jane Crow.
The Texas Supreme Court, including one judge who was arrested for protesting abortion clinics, just denied a potentially life-saving abortion for a woman whose fetus had a fatal diagnosis.
This is all grotesque and radically out of line with what we would expect of a reasonable advanced and humane society, but it’s not surprising: It’s exactly what happens when the theocratic, fundamentalist “pro-life” movement seizes power.
