rePROs Fight Back

On September 1st, 2021, Texas effectively banned abortion in the state. Amy Hagstrom Miller , founder and CEO of Whole Woman’s Health and Whole Woman’s Health Alliance, sits down to talk to us about the tremendous stress that Texas’s new legislation has already had on patients, abortion providers, clinic staff, and abortion funds.  Texas’s SB8 outlaws abortion care after six weeks of pregnancy—far...

Afghanistan’s fall to the Taliban and the destruction caused to Haiti by a 7.92 magnitude earthquake have created two simultaneously unfolding humanitarian situations. Rachel Moynihan , Advocacy and Communications Specialist at the United Nations, sits down with us to discuss the work that UNFPA does to support and expand access to sexual and reproductive health and rights for populations in human...

As Afghanistan falls to the Taliban, a humanitarian crisis is quickly unfolding in the country. Hundreds of thousands of individuals have been displaced, with women and girls making up 80 percent of those displaced individuals. Gayatri Patel, Vice President for External Relations at the Women’s Refugee Commission, sits down to talk with us about the situation unfolding in Afghanistan, what it mean...

 It’s no secret that 2021 has seen endless attacks on abortion access. Most notably, Texas is attempting to not only ban abortion at six weeks but allow anyone in the U.S. to sue any person involved in providing abortion care or helping someone in Texas access abortion care. Jessica Mason Pieklo , Senior Vice President and Executive Editor at Rewire News Group and co-host of Boom! Lawyered podcast...

It’s no secret that state legislatures across the country are working tirelessly to restrict access to abortion care. From forcing patients to travel to neighboring states to stigma-based counseling sessions, accessing an abortion comes with countless hurdles. Jackie Blank , Federal Legislative Strategist and Campaign Manager for the Women’s Health Protection Act Campaign at the Center for Reprodu...

Reproductive health and the Catholic church have been heavily featured in the current news—from the Fulton v. Philadelphia Supreme Court case to the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops moving to deny President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, the sacrament of communion. Jamie Manson , President of Catholics for Choice, talks to us about these recent instances of the Catholic Church’s reach over sexual a...

When many people hear the term ‘self-managed abortion,’ they may think unsafe abortion or pre-Roe v. Wade methods of terminating a pregnancy. Nowadays, self-managed medication abortion is extremely safe, effective, and can be done in the comfort and privacy of one’s own home.  Erin Matson , Executive Director of Reproaction, sits down to talk with us about the myths, barriers to care, and the acti...

The Global Gag Rule has been intermittently preventing global communities from accessing comprehensive healthcare for the last 37 years. This Global Gag Rule Repeal Week of Action, it’s important to recognize that ending this harmful policy is extremely urgent. Rebecca Dennis , Senior Legislative Policy Analyst at PAI, sits down to update us on the Global Gag Rule, the impacts it has had around th...

Did you know that in a 2016 referendum, 86% of D.C. residents voted in favor of statehood? Dr. Serina Floyd, OB/GYN and Medical Director/Vice President of Medical Services at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. and Kory Stuer , Public Affairs Manager at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C, sit down to talk with us about the importance of statehood for Washington, D.C...

Under the Trump administration, global LGBTQI+ health and rights faced an unprecedented assault. Andrea Gillespie, Sexual Health and Rights Policy Advisor with the American Jewish World Service (AJWS), sits down to talk with us about progress made by the Biden-Harris administration and what pieces of legislation we can advance to prevent backsliding.   Under the Trump administration, global LGBTQI...

What does a world that has achieved abortion justice look like? It has access to a full spectrum of reproductive health care, where abortion is affordable, accessible, safe, de-stigmatized, without barriers, and never based on income or zip code. Daniela Ochoa Diaz , Federal Strategies Manager with All* Above All, sits down to talk with us about what we need to accomplish to reach abortion justice...

On Monday, May 17th, the Supreme Court announced that they would hear a court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (JWHO) , out of Mississippi that seeks to ban almost all abortion at 15 weeks or later. Dr. Daniel Grossman , obstetrician/gynecologist, Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California San Francisco, and Di...

While Roe v. Wade may be the law of the land, abortion has always been inaccessible and a right on paper only for so many in the United States. Since the passage of Roe, there have been 1,200 abortion restrictions enacted, with 2021 on track to be one of the worst years for abortion restrictions. Jamille Fields-Allsbrook , Director of Women’s Health and Rights at the Center for American Progress a...

We have just passed 100 days of the Biden-Harris Administration! Christina Krysinski , Counsel and Senior Manager of Policy at NARAL Pro-Choice America sits down to talk with us about the reproductive health and rights victories achieved during this period, as well as what the administration can do more of to ensure health and rights for all.  In his second week in office, President Biden ended th...

Last week the Biden took two actions to expand access to reproductive health care: the FDA lightening restrictions to medication abortion access during the pandemic and the Biden administration beginning its rollback of Trump’s harmful Title X program rules. Dee Srivastava , Policy Analyst at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Nina Serriane , Legislative Affairs Manager at Planned Parent...

April 11 – 17, 2021, marks the fourth annual Black Maternal Health Week . In this bonus episode, Dr. Jamila Perritt , board certified OB/GYN and President and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health and Dr. Mishka S. Peart , OB/GYN and fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health, talk to us about the importance of highlighting and discussing the disparities in abortion, contraception, and mat...

LGBTQ+ people, overall, lack equal rights and access in the United States. In fact, in most of the U.S., LGBTQ+ people face discrimination in housing, credit, public accommodations, jury service, and other public arenas that don’t directly involve marriage or employment. It’s also no secret that Republicans around the country have been passing legislation for years that attacks the health and righ...

Gender-based violence, or GBV, is harm perpetrated against a person’s will on the basis of their gender or gender characteristics. It is such a widespread global issue that 1 in 3 women have reported experiencing some form of gender-based violence. Gayatri Patel , Director of Gender Advocacy at CARE USA, talks to us about ­­­­this universal issue.     GBV can include rape or sexual violence, domes...

Catholics have abortions at the same rate as others in the U.S. 58% of Catholics believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 68% of Catholics in the U.S. do not want to see Roe v. Wade overturned. Jamie Manson , President of Catholics for Choice, talks to us about all of the ways that Catholicism deeply impacts the human rights of many in the United States. “Theology of the body,”...

“Bridgerton” is a 2020 Netflix show that follows the fictional Bridgerton siblings as they seek love in Regency-era London. The first season features plots relating to maternal mortality, consent, sex education, and much, much more. Laura D. Lindberg , Principal Research Scientist for the Guttmacher Institute, talks to us about the sexual and reproductive health issues that Bridgerton explores, an...

This week we are doing things a little differently! To celebrate rePROs Fight Back’s 100th episode, host Jennie Wetter will be answering questions sent in by listeners. This week, sit back, relax, and get to know the rePROs Fight Back host just a bit better!  Support the show Follow Us on Social : Twitter: @rePROsFightBack Instagram: @reprosfb Facebook: rePROs Fight Back Bluesky: @reprosfightback....

Medication abortion provides safe, effective, and time-sensitive medical care to patients around the U.S. that require an abortion. Unfortunately, medication abortion faces multiple restrictions, with the Supreme Court recently ruling that patients must access the medication in-person. Especially in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, these restrictions are not only unnecessary, but blatantly d...

Clinics that are funded by Title X provide critical family planning care to many around the U.S. This care includes pelvic exams, STD testing and treatment, cancer screenings, birth control prescription services, and more. The Trump administration’s 2019 administrative rule, sometimes referred to as the domestic gag rule, has completely gutted the Title X program Robin Summers, Vice President of H...

Reproductive Justice is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities. Monica Raye Simpson, Executive Director of SisterSong, Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, sits down with us to talk about how the framework of reproductive justice is deeply interwoven into events that are...

Health care is a human right and yet immigrants in the US cannot receive appropriate health insurance coverage or healthcare because of their immigration status. Abbey Zhu, member of the Chicago chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF), Luisa Cuautle, activist with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice (NLIRJ) and Candace Gibson, Associate Director of...