Kate Cox spoke about her abortion experience at the DNC
Ayala, Joshua, and Hadley Duvall: Why they came to the RV in Illinois after Dobbs v. Jackson
Ayala is 28 and works as an electrician. His wife suggested he sign up for the free reproductive health clinic that was being sponsored by the organization after seeing a social media post about it.
In a second exam room on the other side of the RV, Dr. Colleen McNicholas offered prescriptions for abortion pills – which she says patients could take on site or take home, under Illinois law.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to show how when you have a state like Illinois that prioritizes healthcare access and passes good policy that you can be creative and innovative in how you meet people’s healthcare needs,” Dr. McNicholas said of the clinics presence near the convention.
Planned Parenthood purchased the RV in response to the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which allowed most of Illinois’ neighboring states to heavily restrict abortion.
Providing abortion in the region also means navigating a number of challenges. The unit was set up inside a fenced lot, with several security guards on hand.
In a statement, National Right to Life President Carol Tobias called the Planned Parenthood clinic “disgusting,” and said it was “not surprising,” given the Democratic Party’s support for abortion rights.
Simmons-Duffin: a man. Right. Amanda Zurawski and her husband, Josh, spoke. She needed to be sick enough to get an abortion in Texas, so she went to the intensive care unit. The importance of abortion access for rape survivors was discussed by the Kentucky resident, Hadley Duvall. She had an abortion at age 12 because she was raped by her stepfather. As well, as well as, Kaitlyn Joshua was also able to speak. NPR first reported her story in 2022. She had a miscarriage and was turned away from multiple hospitals in Louisiana, which has strict abortion laws. I spoke to her today and asked what it was like standing on that stage. She said right before she spoke, she got emotional.
There is a person named Shakey. Kate Cox’s story caught people’s attention around the country. Remind us what she went through and how it’s relevant to this conversation about reproductive rights in the U.S.
Rejoinder: Is abortion a rallying cry for the American people and the Deep South? Julie Burkhart’s story at the DNC
KAITLYN JOSHUA: I had tears in my eyes, and I looked out in the audience at my husband, and he could tell that I was kind of about to kind of freak out a little bit. Just go slow, he kind of summoned me to calm down. It’s difficult. It is really heavy.
The question is, “How did it come about?” Selena, it’s so striking that we are seeing these women recount traumas on a national stage and, in doing so, kind of becoming a political force.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: It is true. The public face of abortion has been turned upside down by the Dobbs decision. The abortion issue used to be a rallying cry for Republicans, but it barely came up at all at the Republican National Convention a few weeks ago. The topic is being discussed by many speakers. I reached Julie Burkhart, who’s also at the DNC this week. She is the co-owner of the Hope Clinic.
Simmons-Duffern is a character on the television show “Suits.” Dr. George Tiller was murdered in Kansas in 2009. She decided to reopen his clinic, so she knows about the risks and rewards of being public about abortion.
Simmons-Duffin was mentioned. I wanted to know if public talking about abortion would have an impact on her life in the Deep South. She says it is hard to relive what she went through over and over, and there are people who push back on her and her story, which is painful. She told me she was let go from her job recently because of how much time she’s been spending traveling around campaigning for Harris. She feels she was called to do the work and she’s determined to stay at it.
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After US Supreme Court ruled in August that states can’t ban abortions, several clinics have opened in the US, including one in Illinois, where the Democratic Party’s national convention is being held. The clinic offered abortion pills to women on site or at home under Illinois law. “It’s a great opportunity for us to show how when you have a state like Illinois…you can be creative,” a doctor said.