August 24, 2022 • 35 mins
In part 2 of our interview we discuss Planned Parenthood's anti-union retaliation and the importance of community support to workers organizing.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Dick It Happen Here, a podcast about NGO
is portraying the working class and casting reproductive autonomy to
the wolves. I'm your host, Christopher Wong, and this is
part two of my interview with Crystal and Elizabeth from
UEI Local sixe six. They are once again representing only
themselves in the union and not planned parenthood. Yes, so
let's get back to the interview. Okay, should should I?
(00:26):
Should I do a incredibly long and drawn out metaphor
about migrant workers in China? Go for it? Yeah, Okay,
So I'm gonna, I'm Gonna'm gonna, I'm gonna do a
man for it. Okay, So alright, alright. So one of
one of the sort of engines of Chinese economic growth
for a long time is that China's economy is built
on migrant labor. There are I think it's like two
(00:49):
fifty million migrant workers. It's like like if you put
them together as a country, I think I got to nine.
If you put together as a country, it would be
like the fourth largest country in the world. And this
was able to happen, you know, and like the sort
of like the secret of the Chinese miracle is that
it was a bunch of workers who were exploited horribly
and they also had a lot A lot of these
(01:12):
workers are coming from the countryside, and there's still sort
of like kinds of forms of like communal landownership that
are left over from the socialist period there. And so
what happens is you have these sort of like I
don't know, like kind of socialist collective air like collective
landownership stuff that's like basically subsidizing these workers so that
they can move into the cities. And this means that
(01:33):
their bosses have to pay like that their their bosses
can pay them less because part of their income and
part of their support network is coming from something that's
outside of the outside of the such a system. And
that's what this reminds me of where it's like, this
stuff is happening because of this incredible community mobilization and
like that's where the support is coming from. But that
also means that like the actual like the organizations who
(01:57):
are getting the most money and the most resources into
are like you know, who are your bosses don't have
to do that because it's it's you know, and this
is the same thing with your labor to where it's
it's you have these these like there's this way in
which solidarity is mobilized as a way to sort of
like stop gap the fact that these groups don't want
(02:18):
to pay people and don't want to give people the
resources that are necessary, and so because it has to
get done, people will, like, people will do it, and
people will people will donate stuff, people will help support,
people will do this work. But the thing that it
winds up doing is that these people are never actually
forced to see the full consequences of their actions. They're
never never forced to like actually see what what the
staff and decisions like does what what the fact that
(02:39):
they don't pay you anything? Like actually does they don't?
They never have to face it because people are like
desperately trying to patch the boat together so it doesn't sink. Yeah,
I've been thinking a lot, like what would it be
like if you know, one of our higher up managers
turned away all of these patients and it was them, Yeah,
what if they knew what it was like? I remember
(03:02):
picking up the phone a couple of weeks ago, and
the only thing that I heard when I picked up
that phone was a blood curdling scream like This was
like a scream out of a horror movie. And then
there were two thuds and then dead sides and I
(03:23):
don't know what happened to that person. I I don't
know if they were able to call back. I didn't
call back because if that person is in danger right now,
I'm not going to subject them to any more danger. UM.
There's a reason that when we dial out it's the
restricted or block numbers. But it's moments like that that
(03:48):
stick with you. And the fact that we're having more
and more of these moments where like every other call
is not like exactly to that level, but like emotionally
still sticks with you. And just for some additional UM,
just like to kind of like build out this kind
of like misogynistic context that we're working. And it's actually
(04:11):
super common to get people calling in for abortion services,
like in the middle of a fight with their partner. UM.
I have had had like men like actively obstructing the
caller and you know, I'm trying to schedule them, and
they'll have me on speaker phone and everything and training
(04:33):
me to and I was like, are you able to
get to like another place because I can't hear you
over him? And you know, and he's like, I'm not
doing anything, and I'm like I just need to be
able to hear you, and like, um, yeah, so you
do you get that because that's you know, because there's
people want abortions for every reason under the sun, and
(04:55):
it's totally fine. Um. People get abortions for lots of
different reasons, but a common reason is because their partner
sucks and he's a piece of ship. He was abusive
and they got to get away from him. And that's
unfortunately common. And we're on the phone getting that. Sometimes
we get to meet them in real life too, and
(05:15):
that's always super fun. I always say that, I say
to patients constantly that boyfriends either only go one of
two ways when we meet them in our clinic. They're
either wonderful and fantastic and very supportive um or they're
just the worst. And I've had patients boyfriends who literally,
(05:36):
while this person is mid procedure will be like, you're
being dramatic and need to stop, and they'll take a
phone call yeah or something, but playing games on their
phone and they won't look at anybody m or they'll
actively leave their partner there. And these are people that
(05:57):
like were their rides. Oh yeah, we've had people get abandoned. Yeah. Yeah,
they'll just see like I'm done, I'm bored, and then
they'll just leave and it's just so frustrating. Lots of
deal with We have a lot to deal with the staff.
And I always tell people because I trained UM staff
(06:17):
at the clinic, and I'm always like, we see everything here.
And when I say I say that, I mean it.
We see literally everything like you just and I'm sure
there are other similar health provisions like health services that
it's kind of similar. We just kind of see everything, UM,
but yeah, we we literally see everything because people when
(06:39):
people come in for an abortion appointment, UM, like we
don't just talk about the procedure, you know, we do
birth control counseling, STD screening, UM, we provide resources for housing,
legal support, UM, therapy, finding therapists, and we just we
we do so much because we're providing a comprehend of
(07:00):
health care service. And again, like something that we tell
patients is that they can expect to be here for
like four hours six and it depends on the individual patients,
their individual needs UM and what services we can provide
for them. And sometimes patients need a lot of TLC
and we're not going to rush that. Um, they're going
(07:23):
to get the services that they need and they want,
and we're going to do it on their time because
they're very they're very fragile, and that's not the time
to run times through. They're not always so sometimes they're
fragile and like sometimes they're like, let's get this done,
you know, I just oh, yeah, I just want to
the whole range of we get, we get. But sometimes
(07:46):
they're very fragile. Yeah. We have had some really confident
patients that I really like talking to though that they're
very yeah, like ready to get it over with and
are like thanks for being here, and they just my day.
I love it when we're like, oh, how do because
we have to you know, we have to do like
make sure that they're not being coerced in everything. And
(08:06):
it's like, so, you know, how are you feeling about everything?
And they're like, I feel great. I can't wait to
not be pregnant, and they're like dancing. Obviously that's nice,
but you know, in reality, a lot of times when
we ask someone how they're feeling and what's going on,
we're like the first person to have asked them that
in like two years, so then we're like opening up
a space, which I'm so glad we get to do. Um.
(08:30):
I love working with patients, I love the services we provide, UM.
But it's it's what what sucks and what's a failure
is that I'm like the first healthcare provider to like
ask them how they're feeling and actually care and like years,
like we really get something. We get some patients who
have been like shoot up and spit out by the
(08:53):
health care system, and no one's ever given a ship
and we all, we all are very good at giving
a ship. So um. Yeah, it really seems like just
like everything that's wrong with this country gets thrown at
like you specifically, because this is like like every every
sort of like every bit of racism, every bit of sexism,
(09:15):
like every like failure of the health care system, like
every every like and it's not even like everything on
a political level and on a social level that goes
wrong with people's lives. Yeah, I think it comes up
a lot with stigmatized health care UM like abortion and
(09:36):
then also hormotherapy I imagine was pretty similar. Is you're
facing a lot of obstacles that are put up by
the communities, the institution, and the health care system. The
employer is like your family. There's a Remember we did
an interview with a promotion activist from Mexico. One of
the things that she was talking about was, um, she
(09:58):
called it social decriminalization. Oh, is it kind of destigmatizing?
Like yeah, yeah, but it's like, like I think she
didn't talk about it a huge amount, but it seemed
like the concept behind it, it was like, Okay, so
you have legal you have like legal criminalization, but then yeah,
like social segmatization means that it's still not really legal
because there's there's like there's you know, there's like social
(10:20):
laws against the rights. You have to like deal with both.
And that that struck me as like a really I
don't know, it's a really powerful like way to think
about it. I guess. Is it kind of like a
moral thing where people think, like it's not okay to
get an abortion, so you get like that pressure and that, Yeah,
and I think and also I mean, like it's not
it's it's it's the pressure like applied on a person
(10:40):
from just like you know, like I mean in Mexico
is a lot of like people who a growing up Catholic, right,
but also like it's the pressure from your family, is
pressure from your friends, it's a pressure from everyone around you,
and you have to like socially like legalize it. Because
Crystal has been doing this work longer than I have.
Like I said, I've only been working at our current
job for a year, which I love. UM, But definitely
(11:03):
when I started, UM, there were people in my life
that I didn't think, we're gonna get weird about it,
because I know a lot of liberal people. Most of
all of my friends are very liberal, very open pro choice,
like very union friendly. And immediately I noticed that when
(11:26):
I started talking happily about abortions, people would get really
quiet and really awkward. Um, and they would be like
that's great, I'm happy for you. But then that was
like it like I couldn't and I'd be like no,
but like abortions and then they're great, They're great. People
(11:48):
need them. It's an essential service. And so I just
upped up the anti more and I started talking about
it a lot more. This is what I gotta do,
gotta weed out the week. Like if you're uncomfortable with
my job, job, I'm not going to talk about it.
But yeah, that is a component to like also on
(12:08):
top of literally everything else, like um, you know, like
how hard the job is and how then we got
to like rally as a union and get better wages
and and then we can't even sometimes talk about it
because because the stigma like with friends or family, like
I can't talk about my parents or I can't talk
with my parents about my job. So it's just like
(12:30):
this whole big part of my life because I'm pretty
much like an abortion access activist and I just can't
talk about it and with them, which is just you know,
it's it would be nice if I could, but I can't,
and I just kind of deal with it. And then
also um even tiny normal situations like getting a haircut
or getting an uber, it's people ask you what you
(12:51):
do all the time. I lie every time, But that's
a decision you have to make because sometimes I lie
and sometimes I don't know what it is just going
to tell the truth, and it's like a gamble because
I've told the truth before and then an uber driver
starts praying for me. And then I've told the truth
before and had someone um like open up to me,
(13:11):
and then we have a great conversation and then I've
told the truth before and had really awkward conversations were
like I support abortion, I think some people have too
many and it's like, why are you telling me to
get out here? But um, yeah, this was a decision
that I made for myself personally because of this. One
time I took an uber to work and I mentioned
what I did, and then that guy um started like
(13:36):
talking about me to the antis in front of our
job and they were like talking about it was it
was actually it was a woman. It was a it
was a female Uber driver. I mentioned this to her um,
and she went up and was like, I think that
like what you guys are doing. It's like she was
(13:57):
talking to the anti specifically. She was like, what you're
doing it is too aggressive. You need to buy the
building next door, Oh my god, set up shop there
and make it less antagonizing so people want to listen
to you. And then immediately in the group chat, everybody
was like, who's talking to the antis? And I'm like,
I just mentioned that I worked there. Um. It was
(14:18):
just a lot. So after that, I was like, on
my way to work at the very least, I'm just
not going to talk about it. I'm gonna be like
I work at a doctor's office downtown. It's like risk assessment. Yeah,
I feel like the antis learned my name by listening
for the uber drivers and I've got an uber drivers.
They're like, who are you? What's your name? And I'm like,
I'm not going to tell you because there's a dude
(14:39):
standing there that wants to follow me. So you're gonna
deal with that a brew driver. Yeah, we gotta switch
up patterns when we come into work sometimes too. And
I do what I actually started, Um when I call
an uber to work because I don't have a car
all the time because I don't get paid that much.
But U when I have to uber to work, Um,
(15:03):
I've started getting dropped off like somewhere else and just
walking because it's just too too many problems, too much,
Like I got, I get dropped off at like a
different location, like a couple of blocks away from work,
at a different spot usually, and then I just walk in.
Like if you you might just want to go to
work and drink your coffee and you have like your
(15:25):
uber driver joining the protests outside, it's like then it's
worse because they know they picked you up, they know
where you live and they know your name, your name,
they want to shout your name out the door. It's like, because, yeah,
(15:45):
the protesters learned my name and they like chant my
name and we're like, I'll walk behind and like the
whispering my name. I'm like, what is this? This is
kind this is kind of kinky, but like yeah, and
we decide that they don't actually know who you are.
They just like every do with banks. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
So for the listeners, I have like pretty blunt banks. Yeah,
(16:06):
but I'm not the only worker in the building obviously
who has banks. But so everyone in the buildings like Crystal, Crystal.
I think everybody with banks worts your worker named Crystal.
I guess that's reassuring, but also bad for other people
with banks because they might get killed. Yeah, it's like
(16:26):
funny but not funny. I'm just you got were trying
to make light of it. We all we have to. Yeah.
So the other thing I still wanted to ask about
was Crystal. Yeah, you've had like the bosses doing disciplinary
(16:48):
action for stuff that you've been doing in terms of
unions stuff. We'll talk about that a little bit technically
pre disciplinary, but I mean, like, what does it matter
because like the point is the same is is intimidation. UM.
It's very easy to do, is to get your lawyer,
get your HR and have them talk to someone, and
then everybody knows about it because everybody talks at work
(17:09):
and bad gas travels fast and UM, then they and
the whole idea is to to scare people into not
talking to reporters, not talking to UM people about what's
going on. And I feel like it's difficult to talk
about what's been happening like this is like I keep
(17:32):
saying it, it's a it's a national health crisis. It's
a disaster, it's a tidal wave, it's a hurricane, and
it's generational trauma. We're using all of these words, and
then like I feel like being I'm pressured into not
even talking about it because I'm talking about everything. I'm
talking about how we're understaffed, I'm talking about how we're
(17:54):
seeing patients from all over. I'm talking about, UM, how
how traumatizing it is. And for whatever reason, it's just
more comforting for some of these organizations to hide under
the table with their lawyer and just like shaking their
boots and say, like we could be sued for this
(18:14):
and we could be sued for that and what if
that happens? What if this happens? And like for me,
it's like, well, you know what, what what if someone
dies because we can't get them in and they can't
get to us because of legislation and there being no
health care infrastructure because part of healthcare is also getting
to the appointment. Um, so if like none of that
(18:37):
exists and like people are suffering because of it, Like
I just can't keep my mouth shut about that. And
I definitely feel like as like somebody a member on
the bargaining team, and I also am ced our rally. Um,
I feel like there's been a lot of pressure on
me and my big mouth. Um. I feel like I've
they're trying to intimidate me and scare me. And I'm
(18:58):
blessed for a reasons. Number One, UM, my dad, who
is otherwise conservative and doesn't support anything that I do,
but he was a union stewart, and growing up, I
would see him resolving conflict as a union stewart and
that was very influential and inspirational to me because it
really instilled some good values, even though we don't have
(19:19):
the same values obviously, but and you didn't. But there's that,
Like I I developed like a strong sense of labor
rights and labor activism from him and then too, my
first career choice was a middle school teacher, so I've
taught seventh and eighth grade for about seven years. So like,
(19:39):
literally nothing scares me, because after you've talked to a
cafeteria full of a hundred and twenty thirteen year olds,
it's like that's it. That's like the scariest thing ever.
Um So I'm not really afraid of the bullying and
the intimidation. Um, which is good because it definitely is
very effective and I'm sure a lot of people would
(20:01):
be pissing themselves, but um, I'm pissing uself a little bit,
but I'm fine. Um, I have a second job after
all that, Like that's like fun, the fact you have
to work another job. Like and they're like one of
the things I noticed is they're they're doing they're doing
the working you for thirty five hours and not forty
(20:22):
because yeah, so don't benefits. I don't know. Like the
impression that I get from this and I think that
makes you really angry is like it really feels like
like the like how worried they are about being suited.
It feels like like the fact that that's sort of
like the basis of all this, and just like they
(20:43):
they they're behaving as if they've already lost and they're
trying to like like claw and hold onto whatever they have.
But it's like if if if you're if you're fighting
from the position of we have already lost, you're you're
just gonna keep losing. And it's like and and and
you know it's not just that it's like okay, like
if they were just doing that, but then you know,
(21:04):
like not passing, like not literally forcing everyone else who's
working with them to also be in the same sort
of defeatism, like it would be different. But it's like
it's like no, that they're they're then inflicting that on you,
and it's just infuriating. Yeah. I think this also, um
to segue to something that actually had happened to me today.
(21:27):
Um as part of um, you know, being in a
call center for an abortion provider is that we I
think this instills like a sense of fear for providers
as well, um, for their own personal safety. It just
makes it feel bigger because you have all these other
(21:49):
people would be like, well, it's it's like, these are
all these things that could happen to you, this is
what might happen to you. UM. And I think that
it makes providers have to evaluate, you know, their own
risks to what they do. UM. And if you are
somebody with not as strong values for this work, like
(22:13):
it's not a strong an opinion towards this work, it
causes UM, you to just neglect patients because UM. I
had an incident that happened today where we had somebody
call UM from a different state where abortion is not legal,
and they had their best friend in the car with
(22:35):
them and they were like, my friend is like actively hemorrhaging.
She's been like bleeding for days. UM, do you have
like an emergency appointment? Like we could drive up to
p A. UM, Like what do I do? She's been
to her doctor three different times and they refused to
treat her because they like viable. And in my brain,
(22:57):
I'm just shaking because I'm like, this is a h
this is your job, Like you're the first thing as
a doctor is to make sure that your patient doesn't die,
and they might die and I'm not a doctor. UM.
And so I was like, if your friend is losing
(23:19):
so much blood that you are worried for her safety. UM.
I know on the phone they were talking about how
she felt like she was like getting dizzy and like
losing a ridiculous amount of blood. And I was like,
I strongly suggest that you go to a hospital where
um abortion is legal, since you're planning on, you know,
(23:41):
coming up for an abortion anyway, UM, because in that case,
they would have to treat you no matter what. UM.
And if you know it's going to result in an abortion,
then at the very least you're protected because you're here
in your cross state line. And I'm like, because any
(24:01):
any hospital has to treat you, UM for something that's serious,
and it's it's scary to think that there are definitely
other other providers and other places where this kind of
thing is also happening. UM. And I just worry that,
(24:23):
you know, Um, what if I was ten minutes, Like
what if I was two minutes late, what if I
was thirty seconds? Like what if I told her to wait? Um?
Like some places kind of have to um or I
told her that I couldn't help her, Like some places
kind of have to with these laws. I don't think
(24:46):
that I could live with the guilt of that. M
hm um. It's just another another added trauma to the day.
And I feel like a lot of people said and
like these people suck, But a lot of people were
saying that, like stuff like this wouldn't happen. I know
(25:07):
for a fact that I had so many I'm very
vocal about oortion access in my work, and I've had
people tell me like, people won't be hemorrhaging and driving
across state lines, and I'm like, absolutely, they will be. Absolutely,
And this was like a month ago, and then well
more than a month ago. Time goes fast, but like
this was like prior to dobs, I should say, but um,
(25:29):
and it's just when they were telling me, like I
don't believe you, and I'm like, what do you mean
you don't believe me? This is the most believable thing.
And then to have had people say that it wouldn't
happen and to call me a liar and like a
drama queen, and then now to like, I mean, I
wasn't I didn't get a call like that, but like
to hear like my coworker and like and then just
like hearing it happened elsewhere, because like you know, we
(25:51):
have comrades and and Union UM siblings in Ohio UM
with other unions, and they've talked about it happening, and
just so hearing my my um my peers talking about
it and just knowing like we knew this would happen,
and we I just it feels like we just like
walked right into it with no plan. There's still no plan.
(26:13):
People are still in cars drive across state lines while
actively hemorrhaging, and I don't know what it will be
done other than us workers really stepping up and hopefully
the community then supporting us UM, because we can't do
(26:34):
it without community support, like like Elizabeth was saying before,
you know, oh, and Elizabeth was actually talking about before
about the food that we've been getting from the community.
And this also made me think of what it looks
like to turn up for workers in general, because you know,
we're all workers here and like we know what it
feels like where you're too busy to stop and eat
(26:54):
and you're just going through your day and you're running
on fumes and you're exhausted. But the fact that our
community was like feeding has been feeding us, and like
turning up for us to the point where like I was,
having good, healthy food confused me from day to day
in that well since then and then it really got
me wondering like, is this is what it likes? This
(27:16):
is what it's like when you have well fed workers
and that are cared for. So, you know, if the
only people answering the call for these these people who
need healthcare are us, We're exhausted, we don't have time
to go out and get food, especially since we've got
people following us down the street whatever, um while we
go get a hot dog trying to bother us, um.
(27:38):
But then to have like the community bringing us food
and then being well fed, it was just like, oh
my god, what if all workers were well fed and
all communities turned up for their workers. Wouldn't that be
so nice? And it got me thinking like like wow,
this is like a really positive thing that is not
(27:58):
really talked about. Like I mean, we talk about feeding people,
but like what if workers were well fed? Like I
don't like healthcare workers. It's just it's been really nice.
And I love our community. Um, I love our city.
I love the organizations that have been organizing it. We're
incredibly grateful. Yeah, they're fantastic, they're they're so good to us. Um.
(28:22):
I know that for those couple of weeks where we
had food in our breakroom, UM, I think we worked
a lot better. Everybody was in much better moods. I
didn't get shaky hands, you know. Yeah, we were all
like really excited to see each other and talk to
each other and talk about our days. Um just over
like actually good coffee. And it was just a huge
(28:46):
morale boost to have the community supporting the workers. And
then now we have the community coming to our union
rally saying we support you, we want you to get
paid more, we want you to have better staff, and
that is just like so necessary right now because we
need we need the community, we need everyone. What else
(29:14):
can listeners who are decord like want to help but
are not in the industry do just uh to support
you all well? And I guess on two levels, like
one is like like what what can they do sort
of in general in their communities and then to specifically
to help y'all with your fight with the hospital clinic
(29:36):
just a little clinic, just a tiny, little, tiny little guy. UM.
I know that for us specifically, I think do what
you do best if you are a person who likes
to make art, um, we love seeing your drawings. We
love seeing like your handwritten notes. UM. If you're a
(29:56):
person who makes a really good cup of coffee, or
if you're a cafe who just wants to bring us coffee,
we love coffee. UM. If you're a bakery that wants
to donate like donuts or you know, cheesecakes, we will
happily eat them. Um. Yeah. If you want to, like
(30:18):
send us a bluetooth speaker so we can listen to
music during the day. Whatever you do best is what
we would love as long as it comes from like you,
comes from your heart, like we love um weighted blankets
and fluffy things and snacks and just um all of
(30:38):
those things that come like from the heart make us
feel like it's worth it um at least from the community. UM.
And things also that we don't have to think about um.
Because as beautiful as make your own taco kids are,
we still have to have time to make our own
tasso ta. Yeah. So if if there's anything that you
could just like throw at us and it's already like
(31:00):
put together, like assembled, has very little thought, like a um,
a zombie or a toddler or a burnt out abortion
worker and you know, put two and two together. We
love those two. And you could also follow our union
UM and there's actually a bunch of abortion care worker unions.
(31:22):
We're not the only one, we are many. We are
legion UM. So you can really follow any of us
and just boost what we need because right right now
the p p F A union like New York City
San Francisco is needing a lot of boosting what they're
what they're doing. Goot Mocker union needs a lot of
love and support. But our union UI Local six Night
six UM. Our social media is at p p w
(31:46):
P Union UM. Not to self vote, but if you
go on there, there are videos of our rally and
I need leader a shaped putata if anything wants to
see us busted open, it's pretty it's pretty cool. We
busted open a Uterus shape pinata at our rally and
as we brought up a UM union family child because
(32:09):
it was it was the son of a local union member.
We brought him up and we helped him splash the panada,
the Uterus panada, and as he was swinging it was like,
this is what we think about low wages. This is
what we think about scotis, this is what we think
about understaffing. And then candy just like burst out of it.
It was like a normal birth, you know. Yeah, glitter
(32:31):
and candy pop out, very realistic. Actually abortions to people
don't know this, but glitter always comes out during an abortion.
Can confirm there's gonna be there's gonna be like three
people who actually believe you. They're gonna they're gonna like
tell their friend this, and their friends gonna be like,
(32:52):
what are you talking about that. You're like, no, no,
I heard it on a podcast, or like the servings
sprays glitter when you when you touch it, Dilating the
cervix is really just opening it up so that it
litter come out. Yeah. I guess. Well okay, so logistics wise, yeah,
if you send me links, I will we will put
(33:12):
them in the episode description. Um. Yeah, and yeah, I guess.
Do you two have anything else that you want to say? Um?
I don't think so, other than like thank you for
having guess. Um, this is super fun. We had a
great time. Yeah, me too. Yeah, it was good. I
(33:34):
love talking about abortion. Oh yeah, oh my god. Me
and Elizabeth on the phone, just gabbing away, and we'll
we'll be on twenty on a call twenty minutes talking
to like someone who who needs help, and then we'll
like get off and then we'll be gathering about whatever
for like ten minutes and mostly TikTok's mostly TikTok. But um, yeah,
I know. It's it's so important too that we can
(33:56):
be platformed as like abortion care workers, as union members,
as people working in a stigmatized field during a crisis.
It's very It means so much, and it's meant a
lot to me to see how many abortion episodes this podcast, Like, yeah,
you're really cover and everything. Yeah, I was looking them
up and I was like, there's it's it's every angle
(34:16):
of abortion care and I love it. We love to
see my knowledge too, and we love to see it.
You're gonna run out of topics, so eventually, but you
really should have an episode about the serve ex glitter. Yeah,
so this will this will be our actually wait are
you full episodes actually booked me the second apul fulls episode.
More people need to know about this phenomenon alright, that
(34:42):
this this has been make it happen here. Uh, you
can find us in the places where you know where
to find us, because we say this at the end
of every episode. H yeah, thank you too. Again, thank you.
It could Happen Here as a production of cool Zone Media.
(35:02):
For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website
cool zone media dot com, or check us out on
the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
listen to podcasts. You can find sources for It Could
Happen Here, updated monthly at cool zone media dot com
slash sources. Thanks for listening.
Welcome to Dick It Happen Here, a podcast about NGO
is portraying the working class and casting reproductive autonomy to
the wolves. I'm your host, Christopher Wong, and this is
part two of my interview with Crystal and Elizabeth from
UEI Local sixe six. They are once again representing only
themselves in the union and not planned parenthood. Yes, so
let's get back to the interview. Okay, should should I?
(00:26):
Should I do a incredibly long and drawn out metaphor
about migrant workers in China? Go for it? Yeah, Okay,
So I'm gonna, I'm Gonna'm gonna, I'm gonna do a
man for it. Okay, So alright, alright. So one of
one of the sort of engines of Chinese economic growth
for a long time is that China's economy is built
on migrant labor. There are I think it's like two
(00:49):
fifty million migrant workers. It's like like if you put
them together as a country, I think I got to nine.
If you put together as a country, it would be
like the fourth largest country in the world. And this
was able to happen, you know, and like the sort
of like the secret of the Chinese miracle is that
it was a bunch of workers who were exploited horribly
and they also had a lot A lot of these
(01:12):
workers are coming from the countryside, and there's still sort
of like kinds of forms of like communal landownership that
are left over from the socialist period there. And so
what happens is you have these sort of like I
don't know, like kind of socialist collective air like collective
landownership stuff that's like basically subsidizing these workers so that
they can move into the cities. And this means that
(01:33):
their bosses have to pay like that their their bosses
can pay them less because part of their income and
part of their support network is coming from something that's
outside of the outside of the such a system. And
that's what this reminds me of where it's like, this
stuff is happening because of this incredible community mobilization and
like that's where the support is coming from. But that
also means that like the actual like the organizations who
(01:57):
are getting the most money and the most resources into
are like you know, who are your bosses don't have
to do that because it's it's you know, and this
is the same thing with your labor to where it's
it's you have these these like there's this way in
which solidarity is mobilized as a way to sort of
like stop gap the fact that these groups don't want
(02:18):
to pay people and don't want to give people the
resources that are necessary, and so because it has to
get done, people will, like, people will do it, and
people will people will donate stuff, people will help support,
people will do this work. But the thing that it
winds up doing is that these people are never actually
forced to see the full consequences of their actions. They're
never never forced to like actually see what what the
staff and decisions like does what what the fact that
(02:39):
they don't pay you anything? Like actually does they don't?
They never have to face it because people are like
desperately trying to patch the boat together so it doesn't sink. Yeah,
I've been thinking a lot, like what would it be
like if you know, one of our higher up managers
turned away all of these patients and it was them, Yeah,
what if they knew what it was like? I remember
(03:02):
picking up the phone a couple of weeks ago, and
the only thing that I heard when I picked up
that phone was a blood curdling scream like This was
like a scream out of a horror movie. And then
there were two thuds and then dead sides and I
(03:23):
don't know what happened to that person. I I don't
know if they were able to call back. I didn't
call back because if that person is in danger right now,
I'm not going to subject them to any more danger. UM.
There's a reason that when we dial out it's the
restricted or block numbers. But it's moments like that that
(03:48):
stick with you. And the fact that we're having more
and more of these moments where like every other call
is not like exactly to that level, but like emotionally
still sticks with you. And just for some additional UM,
just like to kind of like build out this kind
of like misogynistic context that we're working. And it's actually
(04:11):
super common to get people calling in for abortion services,
like in the middle of a fight with their partner. UM.
I have had had like men like actively obstructing the
caller and you know, I'm trying to schedule them, and
they'll have me on speaker phone and everything and training
(04:33):
me to and I was like, are you able to
get to like another place because I can't hear you
over him? And you know, and he's like, I'm not
doing anything, and I'm like I just need to be
able to hear you, and like, um, yeah, so you
do you get that because that's you know, because there's
people want abortions for every reason under the sun, and
(04:55):
it's totally fine. Um. People get abortions for lots of
different reasons, but a common reason is because their partner
sucks and he's a piece of ship. He was abusive
and they got to get away from him. And that's
unfortunately common. And we're on the phone getting that. Sometimes
we get to meet them in real life too, and
(05:15):
that's always super fun. I always say that, I say
to patients constantly that boyfriends either only go one of
two ways when we meet them in our clinic. They're
either wonderful and fantastic and very supportive um or they're
just the worst. And I've had patients boyfriends who literally,
(05:36):
while this person is mid procedure will be like, you're
being dramatic and need to stop, and they'll take a
phone call yeah or something, but playing games on their
phone and they won't look at anybody m or they'll
actively leave their partner there. And these are people that
(05:57):
like were their rides. Oh yeah, we've had people get abandoned. Yeah. Yeah,
they'll just see like I'm done, I'm bored, and then
they'll just leave and it's just so frustrating. Lots of
deal with We have a lot to deal with the staff.
And I always tell people because I trained UM staff
(06:17):
at the clinic, and I'm always like, we see everything here.
And when I say I say that, I mean it.
We see literally everything like you just and I'm sure
there are other similar health provisions like health services that
it's kind of similar. We just kind of see everything, UM,
but yeah, we we literally see everything because people when
(06:39):
people come in for an abortion appointment, UM, like we
don't just talk about the procedure, you know, we do
birth control counseling, STD screening, UM, we provide resources for housing,
legal support, UM, therapy, finding therapists, and we just we
we do so much because we're providing a comprehend of
(07:00):
health care service. And again, like something that we tell
patients is that they can expect to be here for
like four hours six and it depends on the individual patients,
their individual needs UM and what services we can provide
for them. And sometimes patients need a lot of TLC
and we're not going to rush that. Um, they're going
(07:23):
to get the services that they need and they want,
and we're going to do it on their time because
they're very they're very fragile, and that's not the time
to run times through. They're not always so sometimes they're
fragile and like sometimes they're like, let's get this done,
you know, I just oh, yeah, I just want to
the whole range of we get, we get. But sometimes
(07:46):
they're very fragile. Yeah. We have had some really confident
patients that I really like talking to though that they're
very yeah, like ready to get it over with and
are like thanks for being here, and they just my day.
I love it when we're like, oh, how do because
we have to you know, we have to do like
make sure that they're not being coerced in everything. And
(08:06):
it's like, so, you know, how are you feeling about everything?
And they're like, I feel great. I can't wait to
not be pregnant, and they're like dancing. Obviously that's nice,
but you know, in reality, a lot of times when
we ask someone how they're feeling and what's going on,
we're like the first person to have asked them that
in like two years, so then we're like opening up
a space, which I'm so glad we get to do. Um.
(08:30):
I love working with patients, I love the services we provide, UM.
But it's it's what what sucks and what's a failure
is that I'm like the first healthcare provider to like
ask them how they're feeling and actually care and like years,
like we really get something. We get some patients who
have been like shoot up and spit out by the
(08:53):
health care system, and no one's ever given a ship
and we all, we all are very good at giving
a ship. So um. Yeah, it really seems like just
like everything that's wrong with this country gets thrown at
like you specifically, because this is like like every every
sort of like every bit of racism, every bit of sexism,
(09:15):
like every like failure of the health care system, like
every every like and it's not even like everything on
a political level and on a social level that goes
wrong with people's lives. Yeah, I think it comes up
a lot with stigmatized health care UM like abortion and
(09:36):
then also hormotherapy I imagine was pretty similar. Is you're
facing a lot of obstacles that are put up by
the communities, the institution, and the health care system. The
employer is like your family. There's a Remember we did
an interview with a promotion activist from Mexico. One of
the things that she was talking about was, um, she
(09:58):
called it social decriminalization. Oh, is it kind of destigmatizing?
Like yeah, yeah, but it's like, like I think she
didn't talk about it a huge amount, but it seemed
like the concept behind it, it was like, Okay, so
you have legal you have like legal criminalization, but then yeah,
like social segmatization means that it's still not really legal
because there's there's like there's you know, there's like social
(10:20):
laws against the rights. You have to like deal with both.
And that that struck me as like a really I
don't know, it's a really powerful like way to think
about it. I guess. Is it kind of like a
moral thing where people think, like it's not okay to
get an abortion, so you get like that pressure and that, Yeah,
and I think and also I mean, like it's not
it's it's it's the pressure like applied on a person
(10:40):
from just like you know, like I mean in Mexico
is a lot of like people who a growing up Catholic, right,
but also like it's the pressure from your family, is
pressure from your friends, it's a pressure from everyone around you,
and you have to like socially like legalize it. Because
Crystal has been doing this work longer than I have.
Like I said, I've only been working at our current
job for a year, which I love. UM, But definitely
(11:03):
when I started, UM, there were people in my life
that I didn't think, we're gonna get weird about it,
because I know a lot of liberal people. Most of
all of my friends are very liberal, very open pro choice,
like very union friendly. And immediately I noticed that when
(11:26):
I started talking happily about abortions, people would get really
quiet and really awkward. Um, and they would be like
that's great, I'm happy for you. But then that was
like it like I couldn't and I'd be like no,
but like abortions and then they're great, They're great. People
(11:48):
need them. It's an essential service. And so I just
upped up the anti more and I started talking about
it a lot more. This is what I gotta do,
gotta weed out the week. Like if you're uncomfortable with
my job, job, I'm not going to talk about it.
But yeah, that is a component to like also on
(12:08):
top of literally everything else, like um, you know, like
how hard the job is and how then we got
to like rally as a union and get better wages
and and then we can't even sometimes talk about it
because because the stigma like with friends or family, like
I can't talk about my parents or I can't talk
with my parents about my job. So it's just like
(12:30):
this whole big part of my life because I'm pretty
much like an abortion access activist and I just can't
talk about it and with them, which is just you know,
it's it would be nice if I could, but I can't,
and I just kind of deal with it. And then
also um even tiny normal situations like getting a haircut
or getting an uber, it's people ask you what you
(12:51):
do all the time. I lie every time, But that's
a decision you have to make because sometimes I lie
and sometimes I don't know what it is just going
to tell the truth, and it's like a gamble because
I've told the truth before and then an uber driver
starts praying for me. And then I've told the truth
before and had someone um like open up to me,
(13:11):
and then we have a great conversation and then I've
told the truth before and had really awkward conversations were
like I support abortion, I think some people have too
many and it's like, why are you telling me to
get out here? But um, yeah, this was a decision
that I made for myself personally because of this. One
time I took an uber to work and I mentioned
what I did, and then that guy um started like
(13:36):
talking about me to the antis in front of our
job and they were like talking about it was it
was actually it was a woman. It was a it
was a female Uber driver. I mentioned this to her um,
and she went up and was like, I think that
like what you guys are doing. It's like she was
(13:57):
talking to the anti specifically. She was like, what you're
doing it is too aggressive. You need to buy the
building next door, Oh my god, set up shop there
and make it less antagonizing so people want to listen
to you. And then immediately in the group chat, everybody
was like, who's talking to the antis? And I'm like,
I just mentioned that I worked there. Um. It was
(14:18):
just a lot. So after that, I was like, on
my way to work at the very least, I'm just
not going to talk about it. I'm gonna be like
I work at a doctor's office downtown. It's like risk assessment. Yeah,
I feel like the antis learned my name by listening
for the uber drivers and I've got an uber drivers.
They're like, who are you? What's your name? And I'm like,
I'm not going to tell you because there's a dude
(14:39):
standing there that wants to follow me. So you're gonna
deal with that a brew driver. Yeah, we gotta switch
up patterns when we come into work sometimes too. And
I do what I actually started, Um when I call
an uber to work because I don't have a car
all the time because I don't get paid that much.
But U when I have to uber to work, Um,
(15:03):
I've started getting dropped off like somewhere else and just
walking because it's just too too many problems, too much,
Like I got, I get dropped off at like a
different location, like a couple of blocks away from work,
at a different spot usually, and then I just walk in.
Like if you you might just want to go to
work and drink your coffee and you have like your
(15:25):
uber driver joining the protests outside, it's like then it's
worse because they know they picked you up, they know
where you live and they know your name, your name,
they want to shout your name out the door. It's like, because, yeah,
(15:45):
the protesters learned my name and they like chant my
name and we're like, I'll walk behind and like the
whispering my name. I'm like, what is this? This is
kind this is kind of kinky, but like yeah, and
we decide that they don't actually know who you are.
They just like every do with banks. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
So for the listeners, I have like pretty blunt banks. Yeah,
(16:06):
but I'm not the only worker in the building obviously
who has banks. But so everyone in the buildings like Crystal, Crystal.
I think everybody with banks worts your worker named Crystal.
I guess that's reassuring, but also bad for other people
with banks because they might get killed. Yeah, it's like
(16:26):
funny but not funny. I'm just you got were trying
to make light of it. We all we have to. Yeah.
So the other thing I still wanted to ask about
was Crystal. Yeah, you've had like the bosses doing disciplinary
(16:48):
action for stuff that you've been doing in terms of
unions stuff. We'll talk about that a little bit technically
pre disciplinary, but I mean, like, what does it matter
because like the point is the same is is intimidation. UM.
It's very easy to do, is to get your lawyer,
get your HR and have them talk to someone, and
then everybody knows about it because everybody talks at work
(17:09):
and bad gas travels fast and UM, then they and
the whole idea is to to scare people into not
talking to reporters, not talking to UM people about what's
going on. And I feel like it's difficult to talk
about what's been happening like this is like I keep
(17:32):
saying it, it's a it's a national health crisis. It's
a disaster, it's a tidal wave, it's a hurricane, and
it's generational trauma. We're using all of these words, and
then like I feel like being I'm pressured into not
even talking about it because I'm talking about everything. I'm
talking about how we're understaffed, I'm talking about how we're
(17:54):
seeing patients from all over. I'm talking about, UM, how
how traumatizing it is. And for whatever reason, it's just
more comforting for some of these organizations to hide under
the table with their lawyer and just like shaking their
boots and say, like we could be sued for this
(18:14):
and we could be sued for that and what if
that happens? What if this happens? And like for me,
it's like, well, you know what, what what if someone
dies because we can't get them in and they can't
get to us because of legislation and there being no
health care infrastructure because part of healthcare is also getting
to the appointment. Um, so if like none of that
(18:37):
exists and like people are suffering because of it, Like
I just can't keep my mouth shut about that. And
I definitely feel like as like somebody a member on
the bargaining team, and I also am ced our rally. Um,
I feel like there's been a lot of pressure on
me and my big mouth. Um. I feel like I've
they're trying to intimidate me and scare me. And I'm
(18:58):
blessed for a reasons. Number One, UM, my dad, who
is otherwise conservative and doesn't support anything that I do,
but he was a union stewart, and growing up, I
would see him resolving conflict as a union stewart and
that was very influential and inspirational to me because it
really instilled some good values, even though we don't have
(19:19):
the same values obviously, but and you didn't. But there's that,
Like I I developed like a strong sense of labor
rights and labor activism from him and then too, my
first career choice was a middle school teacher, so I've
taught seventh and eighth grade for about seven years. So like,
(19:39):
literally nothing scares me, because after you've talked to a
cafeteria full of a hundred and twenty thirteen year olds,
it's like that's it. That's like the scariest thing ever.
Um So I'm not really afraid of the bullying and
the intimidation. Um, which is good because it definitely is
very effective and I'm sure a lot of people would
(20:01):
be pissing themselves, but um, I'm pissing uself a little bit,
but I'm fine. Um, I have a second job after
all that, Like that's like fun, the fact you have
to work another job. Like and they're like one of
the things I noticed is they're they're doing they're doing
the working you for thirty five hours and not forty
(20:22):
because yeah, so don't benefits. I don't know. Like the
impression that I get from this and I think that
makes you really angry is like it really feels like
like the like how worried they are about being suited.
It feels like like the fact that that's sort of
like the basis of all this, and just like they
(20:43):
they they're behaving as if they've already lost and they're
trying to like like claw and hold onto whatever they have.
But it's like if if if you're if you're fighting
from the position of we have already lost, you're you're
just gonna keep losing. And it's like and and and
you know it's not just that it's like okay, like
if they were just doing that, but then you know,
(21:04):
like not passing, like not literally forcing everyone else who's
working with them to also be in the same sort
of defeatism, like it would be different. But it's like
it's like no, that they're they're then inflicting that on you,
and it's just infuriating. Yeah. I think this also, um
to segue to something that actually had happened to me today.
(21:27):
Um as part of um, you know, being in a
call center for an abortion provider is that we I
think this instills like a sense of fear for providers
as well, um, for their own personal safety. It just
makes it feel bigger because you have all these other
(21:49):
people would be like, well, it's it's like, these are
all these things that could happen to you, this is
what might happen to you. UM. And I think that
it makes providers have to evaluate, you know, their own
risks to what they do. UM. And if you are
somebody with not as strong values for this work, like
(22:13):
it's not a strong an opinion towards this work, it
causes UM, you to just neglect patients because UM. I
had an incident that happened today where we had somebody
call UM from a different state where abortion is not legal,
and they had their best friend in the car with
(22:35):
them and they were like, my friend is like actively hemorrhaging.
She's been like bleeding for days. UM, do you have
like an emergency appointment? Like we could drive up to
p A. UM, Like what do I do? She's been
to her doctor three different times and they refused to
treat her because they like viable. And in my brain,
(22:57):
I'm just shaking because I'm like, this is a h
this is your job, Like you're the first thing as
a doctor is to make sure that your patient doesn't die,
and they might die and I'm not a doctor. UM.
And so I was like, if your friend is losing
(23:19):
so much blood that you are worried for her safety. UM.
I know on the phone they were talking about how
she felt like she was like getting dizzy and like
losing a ridiculous amount of blood. And I was like,
I strongly suggest that you go to a hospital where
um abortion is legal, since you're planning on, you know,
(23:41):
coming up for an abortion anyway, UM, because in that case,
they would have to treat you no matter what. UM.
And if you know it's going to result in an abortion,
then at the very least you're protected because you're here
in your cross state line. And I'm like, because any
(24:01):
any hospital has to treat you, UM for something that's serious,
and it's it's scary to think that there are definitely
other other providers and other places where this kind of
thing is also happening. UM. And I just worry that,
(24:23):
you know, Um, what if I was ten minutes, Like
what if I was two minutes late, what if I
was thirty seconds? Like what if I told her to wait? Um?
Like some places kind of have to um or I
told her that I couldn't help her, Like some places
kind of have to with these laws. I don't think
(24:46):
that I could live with the guilt of that. M
hm um. It's just another another added trauma to the day.
And I feel like a lot of people said and
like these people suck, But a lot of people were
saying that, like stuff like this wouldn't happen. I know
(25:07):
for a fact that I had so many I'm very
vocal about oortion access in my work, and I've had
people tell me like, people won't be hemorrhaging and driving
across state lines, and I'm like, absolutely, they will be. Absolutely,
And this was like a month ago, and then well
more than a month ago. Time goes fast, but like
this was like prior to dobs, I should say, but um,
(25:29):
and it's just when they were telling me, like I
don't believe you, and I'm like, what do you mean
you don't believe me? This is the most believable thing.
And then to have had people say that it wouldn't
happen and to call me a liar and like a
drama queen, and then now to like, I mean, I
wasn't I didn't get a call like that, but like
to hear like my coworker and like and then just
like hearing it happened elsewhere, because like you know, we
(25:51):
have comrades and and Union UM siblings in Ohio UM
with other unions, and they've talked about it happening, and
just so hearing my my um my peers talking about
it and just knowing like we knew this would happen,
and we I just it feels like we just like
walked right into it with no plan. There's still no plan.
(26:13):
People are still in cars drive across state lines while
actively hemorrhaging, and I don't know what it will be
done other than us workers really stepping up and hopefully
the community then supporting us UM, because we can't do
(26:34):
it without community support, like like Elizabeth was saying before,
you know, oh, and Elizabeth was actually talking about before
about the food that we've been getting from the community.
And this also made me think of what it looks
like to turn up for workers in general, because you know,
we're all workers here and like we know what it
feels like where you're too busy to stop and eat
(26:54):
and you're just going through your day and you're running
on fumes and you're exhausted. But the fact that our
community was like feeding has been feeding us, and like
turning up for us to the point where like I was,
having good, healthy food confused me from day to day
in that well since then and then it really got
me wondering like, is this is what it likes? This
(27:16):
is what it's like when you have well fed workers
and that are cared for. So, you know, if the
only people answering the call for these these people who
need healthcare are us, We're exhausted, we don't have time
to go out and get food, especially since we've got
people following us down the street whatever, um while we
go get a hot dog trying to bother us, um.
(27:38):
But then to have like the community bringing us food
and then being well fed, it was just like, oh
my god, what if all workers were well fed and
all communities turned up for their workers. Wouldn't that be
so nice? And it got me thinking like like wow,
this is like a really positive thing that is not
(27:58):
really talked about. Like I mean, we talk about feeding people,
but like what if workers were well fed? Like I
don't like healthcare workers. It's just it's been really nice.
And I love our community. Um, I love our city.
I love the organizations that have been organizing it. We're
incredibly grateful. Yeah, they're fantastic, they're they're so good to us. Um.
(28:22):
I know that for those couple of weeks where we
had food in our breakroom, UM, I think we worked
a lot better. Everybody was in much better moods. I
didn't get shaky hands, you know. Yeah, we were all
like really excited to see each other and talk to
each other and talk about our days. Um just over
like actually good coffee. And it was just a huge
(28:46):
morale boost to have the community supporting the workers. And
then now we have the community coming to our union
rally saying we support you, we want you to get
paid more, we want you to have better staff, and
that is just like so necessary right now because we
need we need the community, we need everyone. What else
(29:14):
can listeners who are decord like want to help but
are not in the industry do just uh to support
you all well? And I guess on two levels, like
one is like like what what can they do sort
of in general in their communities and then to specifically
to help y'all with your fight with the hospital clinic
(29:36):
just a little clinic, just a tiny, little, tiny little guy. UM.
I know that for us specifically, I think do what
you do best if you are a person who likes
to make art, um, we love seeing your drawings. We
love seeing like your handwritten notes. UM. If you're a
(29:56):
person who makes a really good cup of coffee, or
if you're a cafe who just wants to bring us coffee,
we love coffee. UM. If you're a bakery that wants
to donate like donuts or you know, cheesecakes, we will
happily eat them. Um. Yeah. If you want to, like
(30:18):
send us a bluetooth speaker so we can listen to
music during the day. Whatever you do best is what
we would love as long as it comes from like you,
comes from your heart, like we love um weighted blankets
and fluffy things and snacks and just um all of
(30:38):
those things that come like from the heart make us
feel like it's worth it um at least from the community. UM.
And things also that we don't have to think about um.
Because as beautiful as make your own taco kids are,
we still have to have time to make our own
tasso ta. Yeah. So if if there's anything that you
could just like throw at us and it's already like
(31:00):
put together, like assembled, has very little thought, like a um,
a zombie or a toddler or a burnt out abortion
worker and you know, put two and two together. We
love those two. And you could also follow our union
UM and there's actually a bunch of abortion care worker unions.
(31:22):
We're not the only one, we are many. We are
legion UM. So you can really follow any of us
and just boost what we need because right right now
the p p F A union like New York City
San Francisco is needing a lot of boosting what they're
what they're doing. Goot Mocker union needs a lot of
love and support. But our union UI Local six Night
six UM. Our social media is at p p w
(31:46):
P Union UM. Not to self vote, but if you
go on there, there are videos of our rally and
I need leader a shaped putata if anything wants to
see us busted open, it's pretty it's pretty cool. We
busted open a Uterus shape pinata at our rally and
as we brought up a UM union family child because
(32:09):
it was it was the son of a local union member.
We brought him up and we helped him splash the panada,
the Uterus panada, and as he was swinging it was like,
this is what we think about low wages. This is
what we think about scotis, this is what we think
about understaffing. And then candy just like burst out of it.
It was like a normal birth, you know. Yeah, glitter
(32:31):
and candy pop out, very realistic. Actually abortions to people
don't know this, but glitter always comes out during an abortion.
Can confirm there's gonna be there's gonna be like three
people who actually believe you. They're gonna they're gonna like
tell their friend this, and their friends gonna be like,
(32:52):
what are you talking about that. You're like, no, no,
I heard it on a podcast, or like the servings
sprays glitter when you when you touch it, Dilating the
cervix is really just opening it up so that it
litter come out. Yeah. I guess. Well okay, so logistics wise, yeah,
if you send me links, I will we will put
(33:12):
them in the episode description. Um. Yeah, and yeah, I guess.
Do you two have anything else that you want to say? Um?
I don't think so, other than like thank you for
having guess. Um, this is super fun. We had a
great time. Yeah, me too. Yeah, it was good. I
(33:34):
love talking about abortion. Oh yeah, oh my god. Me
and Elizabeth on the phone, just gabbing away, and we'll
we'll be on twenty on a call twenty minutes talking
to like someone who who needs help, and then we'll
like get off and then we'll be gathering about whatever
for like ten minutes and mostly TikTok's mostly TikTok. But um, yeah,
I know. It's it's so important too that we can
(33:56):
be platformed as like abortion care workers, as union members,
as people working in a stigmatized field during a crisis.
It's very It means so much, and it's meant a
lot to me to see how many abortion episodes this podcast, Like, yeah,
you're really cover and everything. Yeah, I was looking them
up and I was like, there's it's it's every angle
(34:16):
of abortion care and I love it. We love to
see my knowledge too, and we love to see it.
You're gonna run out of topics, so eventually, but you
really should have an episode about the serve ex glitter. Yeah,
so this will this will be our actually wait are
you full episodes actually booked me the second apul fulls episode.
More people need to know about this phenomenon alright, that
(34:42):
this this has been make it happen here. Uh, you
can find us in the places where you know where
to find us, because we say this at the end
of every episode. H yeah, thank you too. Again, thank you.
It could Happen Here as a production of cool Zone Media.
(35:02):
For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website
cool zone media dot com, or check us out on
the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
listen to podcasts. You can find sources for It Could
Happen Here, updated monthly at cool zone media dot com
slash sources. Thanks for listening.
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Robert Evans
Garrison Davis
James Stout
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