Nationwide Support for Abortion Rights is at an All-Time High

Plus: Anti-abortion federal judge Matt Kacsmaryk is back on his bullshit

June 16, 2023

Here’s another edition of Hard to Believe It’s Only Tuesday, a weekly roundup of the top headlines, tweets (for now!), toks, takes, and more in abortion news. You can always email me ([email protected]) or DM me on instagram with action items, takes, and news clips. This post is probably too long for email, so click on the links up there ^ above the headline to open in your browser or the Substack app. You don’t want to miss this week’s Good Night and Good Dunk!

The big takeaway: The one-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision that overturned federal protections for abortion rights is coming up next week, and there’s a shitload of coverage across the map, including a bunch of new research:

The Top Headlines

The Takes

  • The Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund’s Laurie Bertram Roberts reflects on the year post-Dobbs on the Death, Sex, Money podcast. The whole episode is worth a listen, but I want to highlight what Laurie has to say about the mutual aid, direct support, and community work the MRFF does to lift up people and families throughout their reproductive journeys, especially in light of the water crisis in Jackson: “Our free pantry is at the highest demand it's ever been at. Like, ever. Ever. And that's food and cleaning supplies and period supplies. And then we distribute diapers, you know, every week. And water, let me just also say water. We always have water out there. We keep out cases of bottled water all the time and we have been for years before it became the thing to do, because pregnant people and children under five are warned not to drink our water and have been for nine years.” (Support their work with your dollars!)

  • Reckon’s Becca Andrews interviews Robyn Baldridge of the Abortion Care Tennessee abortion fund. Says Baldridge, of their efforts to keep up advocacy and fundraising as the outrage cycle waxes and wanes: “Overall, it just feels like people are starting to turn away or get complacent. I think there was a time when there was this understanding that this affects everyone, even if you're not someone who needs to access abortion. But then when you're not in the reality of it, if you're really not someone that needs to access abortion, or you don't know someone that has needed to in the last year, it is really hard for it to feel present.”

  • New data from Guttmacher shows that up to 16 percent of folks who have abortions don’t identify as hetero women. I am no longer asking y’all to use gender-inclusive, queer-friendly language about abortion, I am demanding you do so! Don’t take my word for it, listen to trans folks who have abortions (via We Testify)!

The Tweets/Toks/Grams

The Fight for Midnight by Dan Solomon

Ten years ago this summer, I spent a number of long, long days and nights at the Texas Capitol covering the battle to block an omnibus anti-abortion bill that made national news with Texas State Sen. Wendy Davis’ nearly 13-hour filibuster. At 15 minutes to midnight, State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte’s barn-burner of a parliamentary inquiry — “At what point must a female senator raise her hand or her voice to be recognized over the male colleagues in the room? — sent the packed capitol into a hollering froth as thousands of Texans shouted down the final vote from both inside and outside the gallery. It was an incredible experience, and I passed many of those long hours alongside now-Texas Monthly staffer Dan Solomon, who was reporting for the Austin Chronicle at the time. Dan’s debut novel, The Fight for Midnight, is a YA book that tells the story of a teen guy drawn to the filibuster and his journey to understanding the importance of abortion rights. Learn more about the book in this preview + interview with Dan in Paste.

On Thursday 6/22, I’ll choose a lucky winner from my subscriber list at random, so keep your eyes on your inboxes!

The Fuck Are We Supposed to Do About It?

Goodnight and good dunk — Y’all know I am a sucker for any combo of abortion and Pedro Pascal meme-ification.

That’s all for this week. I’m sure I’ve missed something you’d like to see featured in this roundup, for I am but one woman with a computer and an abortion-news-induced drinking problem. Holler at me — [email protected], or DM me on Instagram, and I’ll try to add follow-ups as I’m able.