The Kate Cox case, happening in Texas right now, is the perfect example of how right-wingers’ promises of “exceptions” in their anti-abortion laws are completely hollow.
Kate Cox received the devastating news that her pregnancy was nonviable, and endangered her health. She went to court and got an emergency order authorizing the abortion. The state Supreme Court stayed the order, and Attorney General Ken Paxton sent a horrific letter to Texas hospitals, threatening charges against medical personnel and lawsuits against hospitals assisting with an abortion for her.
There is no “baby to save” here. The fetus is not viable. Paxton’s actions accomplish nothing except forcing suffering on a woman who is already grieving a wanted pregnancy. His actions may result in her becoming infertile — or even dying.
Twenty women are currently suing the state of Texas for denying them medically necessary abortions. The standard Republican response is that the doctors “misunderstood” the law, and that it has exceptions for medically necessary abortions. In fact, Paxton’s actions show that the law is functioning exactly as intended.
As always, this diary is a group effort. Thanks to mettle fatigue, elenacarlena, Angmar, SandraLLAP, and the WOW crew for links & discussion.
Reproductive Rights:
A woman is suing the state of Kentucky for the right to abort her 8-week pregnancy. She’s not arguing any sort of “exception;” she’s arguing that the ban itself is unconstitutional.
Extremists in Idaho have created a climate of fear around pregnancy.
Via Jessica Valenti: Ohio’s abortion-rights amendment goes into effect this week. Iowa’s Republican AG has not restored the funding that provided emergency contraception to rape victims — even though the funding was mostly used in cases where children were raped. Missouri is the latest state considering a bill charging abortion as murder.
A woman in Ohio was sent home from the emergency room twice, miscarried on her toilet at home — and is now being charged with abuse of a corpse.
Telehealth abortion provider Hey Jane is expanding into Minnesota.
Violence:
Moms for “Liberty” specializes in accusing LGBTQ+ people of being sexual predators. Christian Ziegler, husband of MFL co-founder Bridget Ziegler, has been accused of rape by a woman who says she previously had a 3-way with the Zieglers. (Bridget Ziegler has admitted to the 3-way part — while running the organization that tries to demonize other people’s consensual sex lives!)
Students for Trump founder Ryan Fournier claims guns did more to make women equal than feminism ever did. He’s been arrested for allegedly pistol-whipping his girlfriend.
Lior Haiat, a spokesperson for the Israeli foreign ministry, said the UN statement condemning sexual violence by Hamas was too little and too late. This shouldn’t be difficult: regardless of one’s views on Israel or Palestine, weaponizing rape in war is a horror. This op-ed is paywalled, but wanted to highlight this point:
.. [The two-month failure of international women’s organizations to condemn the systematic rape of October 7 is not a case of momentarily] losing the way, it’s an agreement to live with rape and torture as legitimate tools of combat. It means abandoning women. Not only Jewish women. Psychopaths all over the world are studying the events of these days. They’ll return, in other places, to other women, [claiming other] reasons....
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, who has faced three sexual assault lawsuits recently, faces new accusations over 2003 incident when alleged victim was 17.
Julie Devey, co-founded Killed Women after her daughter’s murder by an ex-boyfriend. Devey’s message: most such murders are preventable, if authorities would take the warnings seriously.
Workplace Issues:
9,000 women are suing Disney over pay disparity.
Melinda French Gates: Women need safety nets for the child care cliff.
Media:
In her new podcast, 20-year-old Ella Weber uncovers stories from her home and the history of the only Native American reservation hosting nuclear weapons in the country. The first episode is on Spotify.
Voice Male works to engage men and boys, a counterpoint to toxic voices like Andrew Tate and Jordan Peterson.
Vogue: Indigenous Weaver Naiomi Glasses Is Ralph Lauren’s First Artist in Residence.
Law and Justice:
From TheConversation When Sandra Day O’Connor stepped down from the U.S. Supreme Court in 2006, she was the last justice to have served as an elected legislator. That guided her consensus-building work on the Supreme Court.
U.S. Senate vote 53-45 Judge Shanlyn Park confirmed to the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai'i, making her the first Native Hawaiian woman to serve as a district court judge.