What They’re Saying About… Life in Post-Dobbs America
Personal Stories Highlight the Destructive and Extreme Republican Anti-abortion Agenda that is Banning Access to Care and Putting Lives at Risk
WASHINGTON — Following the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and the avalanche of abortion bans and restrictions enacted by Republican lawmakers and politicians across the country, the Free & Just campaign began elevating the voices of advocates, doctors, patients, and faith leaders to describe what life is like in post-Dobbs America. Republicans in state houses, on Capitol Hill, where they’re led by anti-abortion Speaker Mike Johnson, as well as those running for higher office, continue to push an extreme anti-abortion agenda that is out of touch with the majority of people who support a federal law that protects safe and accessible abortion care nationwide. As more people worry about the dangers and risks these abortion bans and restrictions pose in their communities, they’re speaking out and fighting back. These are a few of those stories.
Wisconsin OB-GYN Dr. Kristin Lyerly: “I have witnessed how dangerous and heartbreaking it is for my patients when politics interferes with my ability to do my job and prevents me from providing the full spectrum of abortion care.”
“Since Wisconsin’s near-total ban on abortion was reinstated after the fall of Roe, I have witnessed how dangerous and heartbreaking it is for my patients when politics interferes with my ability to do my job and prevents me from providing the full spectrum of abortion care that I once could. I have counseled patients on family planning throughout my career and understand abortion as both a deeply personal decision and medically necessary procedure that must be protected. People have abortions for various reasons, and all are choices they should have the freedom to make.
“Some of the patients I counseled were already parents and could not afford to raise another child. Others faced dangerous complications or learned their child would not survive after birth. No one should make these difficult, highly individualized decisions but the person who is pregnant, their doctor, and the people they love and trust.” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Abortion restrictions could be even worse under new House Speaker Mike Johnson, Opinion, 11/14/23)
AMSA President Rohini Kousalya Siva: “I can’t help but struggle with the fear that I may face violent threats–even death threats–and relentless attacks on my medical and ethical integrity.”
“I did not spend four years working hard in medical school to deprive myself as a resident of these essential learning opportunities. I worry that one of the many ripple effects of overturning Roe is how it undermines the education of a generation of medical students across the country.
“While I want to be excited about the career ahead of me, I can’t help but struggle with the fear that I may face violent threats–even death threats–and relentless attacks on my medical and ethical integrity with little institutional support from organizations like the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology.” (Ms. Magazine: I’m an Aspiring OB-GYN. Here Is Why I Won’t Do My Residency in Any State With an Abortion Ban. 8/10/23)
Arizona OB-GYN Dr. DeShawn Taylor: I should be able to use the skills I spent years learning … to help my patients and shouldn’t have to fear “criminalization for providing that care.”
“My own clinic paused services for three weeks and currently operates at a reduced capacity under Arizona’s 15-week abortion ban. The state Supreme Court is now even reconsidering a law from 1864, before Arizona was a state, that would completely ban legal abortion and allow up to five years in prison for abortion providers. I should be able to use the skills I spent years learning in medical school, residency, and fellowship to help my patients and shouldn’t have to fear criminalization for providing that care.
“I took an oath to care for those in need to the best of my ability. The laws proposed and supported by Speaker Mike Johnson would make that impossible. When doctors are banned from fulfilling their most basic functions, patients’ lives are at risk.” (Copper Courier: Speaker Johnson threatens my ability to do my job. If he gets his way, I’ll wind up in prison. 11/14/23)
New Hampshire Child Care Worker Amanda D’Angelo: “I want lawmakers to understand that abortion bans punish those who are already suffering and make the trauma of a fatal diagnosis for your baby even worse.”
“I knew that I could not handle the physical and mental trauma of watching my baby suffer with no chance of survival, and I knew what the right decision for me was. If I’d been forced to carry my pregnancy to term, I don’t think I would have had the opportunity to be a mom to my 10-month-old son, Jacob, today…
“Knowing that women in my position in 2023 might not have the freedom to have an abortion because the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade one year ago haunts me. Even in states like New Hampshire, where abortion access is currently protected, our reproductive freedom remains under attack… I want lawmakers to understand that abortion bans punish those who are already suffering and make the trauma of a fatal diagnosis for your baby even worse. (Union Leader: Amanda D'Angelo: My abortion was the right decision for me and my baby. 7/13/23)
Arizona Activist Emma Burns: “We need to advocate for medication abortions in Arizona and across the country, as this procedure is not only life-saving but life-affirming.”
“As a 19-year-old college student already struggling, finding out you’re pregnant with twins is akin to submerging underwater. The world falls silent, and your only thought is of survival. I knew the only way for me to move forward would be to terminate my pregnancy. But due to Arizona’s restrictive abortion laws and lack of access to care, I was almost unable to make this decision for myself…I was confident in my decision, but due to a provider shortage and the mandatory waiting period, I was made to wait another week before receiving care I so desperately wanted…
“Three years later, when I think of my experience, I imagine how differently it could have all gone. Not every pregnant person has the freedom to decide, the time to take off work, the funds to obtain care, or the privilege to attend an in-person appointment. In Arizona’s hostile abortion landscape, access to medication abortion is restricted through unnecessary regulations, including the 24-hour waiting period and prohibiting the use of telemedicine for medication abortions. Arizonans are also unable to access care through an FDA federal rule change to allow pharmacies to dispense abortion pills. We need to advocate for medication abortions in Arizona and across the country, as this procedure is not only life-saving but life-affirming.” (AZ Mirror: Women’s lives, like mine, hang in the balance if medication abortion is banned, 10/18/23)
Wisconsin Pastor Tim Schaefer: “People should have the right to decide what is best for their lives based on their own faith, and we should trust them to make those decisions.”
“As I discussed with my congregation, freedom is a core tenet of our faith as Baptists. That includes the freedom to decide whether to end a pregnancy. People should have the right to decide what is best for their lives based on their own faith, and we should trust them to make those decisions… I believe that no single interpretation of scripture should be used by any government to determine laws for how everyone should live. Extreme conservative politicians like Johnson, however, are injecting their radical, narrow interpretation of faith into legislation.
“As the new Speaker wraps his arms around church and state in an effort to bring them even closer together, he omits one of the central tenets of Christianity: love. As Christians, we are called to love our neighbors, not to judge or shame them for decisions made in good faith. As a pastor, I have counseled members of my church and community on their decisions to receive abortion care. We discuss how these decisions are best for their lives and fit into their expression of faith and relationship with their Creator.” (UpNorthNews: Opinion: I’m a Baptist pastor and abortion rights advocate who is deeply troubled with Speaker Johnson’s interpretation of scripture, 12/8/23)
If you would like to interview any of these storytellers or speak to somebody at Free and Just for your reporting, please email: maggie@freeandjust.us
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About Free & Just
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. Follow Free & Just on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.