For Immediate Release
February 21, 2025
Contact: Malachi White, malachi@freeandjust.us
ICYMI: Free & Just Hosts Press Call Marking One Month of Trump Presidency, Highlighting Statewide Abortion Bans and Impacted Storytellers
Watch the Full Press Event Here
WASHINGTON D.C. – Yesterday, Congresswoman Judy Chu (Ca-28) — Co-Chair and Liaison for the Reproductive Health Care Task Force for the Democratic Women’s Caucus — patient storytellers, healthcare providers, and advocates from communities across the country hosted a virtual press event one month after President Trump returned to the Oval Office to execute his anti-abortion agenda, as attacks on abortion access and reproductive freedom continue to escalate across the country. Additionally, the event launched PostRoeReality.com, the latest resource from Free & Just tracking attacks on abortion access and reproductive freedom across the country. Free & Just is also launching a five-figure digital buy in Georgia, Wisconsin, and Texas to uplift the research gathered in this latest resource.
Abortion bans hurt all of us – no matter where we live, and Free & Just is spotlighting what's at stake for communities across the country as the Trump administration seeks to roll back our rights even further.
In response to the new launching of PostRoeReality.com, Veronica Ingham, Senior Campaigns Director for Free & Just released the following statement:
“Now that anti-abortion extremists control the White House and Congress, it’s more important than ever that everyone understands what’s at stake when it comes to abortion access and reproductive freedom in this country. As we mark one month since President Trump’s return to office, we must continue to highlight the dangerous impact of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe and the resulting Post Roe world by uplifting narratives of storytellers directly impacted by abortion bans and calling out the continued attacks on reproductive freedom across the country. These findings highlight the groundwork laid by MAGA extremists to push their unpopular agenda across the country before moving to achieve their ultimate Project 2025 goal — a national federal abortion ban.”
Here are highlights from today’s event:
“While running for president, Donald Trump promised that he would leave the issue of abortion to the states. Once again, when it comes to women’s health, Donald Trump was lying,” said Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-28), Democratic Women's Caucus Reproductive Health Care Task Force Co-Chair and Liaison. “Now more than ever, it’s important to amplify the stories of real people affected by these attacks and be clear about what’s at stake for communities across the country as the Trump administration seeks to roll back our rights even further.”
“As we’ve seen in the past thirty days, look at what Trump and his administration have done and are planning to do,” said Ryan Hamilton, whose wife was denied care in Texas. “It’s important for my daughter to have a future where she doesn’t bleed to death on her bathroom floor like her mom almost did.”
“These bans do not discriminate. They do not make allowances for the health of the mother or the baby. They assume a pregnancy is a blissful 9 months immune from complications and will always result in a living child,” said Gracie Ladd, a patient from Wisconsin who was forced to travel out-of-state for abortion care. “We need more storytellers. We need to amplify their voices. We need to protect their bodies and all future bodies.”
“It was the most agonizing decision I have ever had to make, and one that without question belonged to me and my doctors. Now, millions of women across the country no longer have that choice because of Donald Trump,” said Abby Klausner, a patient based in New York who had an abortion following her cancer diagnosis. “The right to make your own medical decisions, and the right to decide if and when to start a family – those rights are fundamental.”
“For so long I have naively thought of abortion as a singular issue – ‘it’s an individual’s decision.’ But that was my grave error – because abortion access has always been inexorably linked to the future of our democracy,” said Dr. Anusha Viswanathan, patient storyteller and health care provider based in Pennsylvania. “Because a country that can force someone to carry a pregnancy against their will is a country that can force them to do anything.”
“My state drove me out of my home, out of my community, away from my children, and away from my doctors, rather than let me access care,” said Kate Cox, who travelled out of state for care and was lead plaintiff in Cox v. Texas. “I’m just one person, we’re just one family, but our story is playing out in countless states across America. Because of these extreme abortion bans, women are going through the same nightmare I did.”
If you are interested in speaking with health care providers or patients about their experience living in a post Roe world, please contact kelly@freeandjust.us. If you are interested in learning more about the research gathered regarding state-level abortion bans, please contact malachi@freeandjust.us.
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Free & Just is fighting to stop attacks on reproductive freedom and rights. We’re working with people across the country to share real stories to show the devastating consequences of attacks on our reproductive freedom. We all deserve the right to control our bodies and lives. That’s why we’re sharing our stories, raising our voices, and fighting for our future.
