Kathryn Kolbert & Julie F. Kay (#VoteHerIn, Episode 71)

On the 71st Episode of the #VoteHerIn Series, guests Kathryn Kolbert and Julie F. Kay discuss their book, Controlling Women: What We Must Do Now to Save Reproductive Freedom.

"Controlling Women, by distinguished lawyers Kathryn Kolbert and Julie F. Kay, is the definitive account of the battle for American women’s reproductive freedom. Roe v. Wade protected abortion rights and Planned Parenthood v. Casey preserved them. Yet, in the subsequent decades, these constitutional rights have been gutted by restrictive state legislation, the appointment of hundreds of anti-abortion judges, and violence against abortion providers. Today, the ultra-conservative majority at the Supreme Court has Americans worried that American women are about to lose their most fundamental reproductive protections. When Roe is toppled, abortion may quickly become a criminal offense in nearly one-third of the United States. At least six states have enacted bans on abortion as early as six weeks of pregnancy—before many women are even aware they are pregnant. Today, 89% of U.S. counties do not have a single abortion provider, in part due to escalating violence and intimidation aimed at disrupting services.

Authors Kolbert and Kay share the story of one of the most divisive issues in American politics through behind-the-scenes personal narratives of stunning losses, hard-earned victories, and moving accounts of women and health care providers at the heart of nearly five decades of legal battles. At this make-or-break moment for legal abortion in the United States, Kolbert and Kay propose audacious new strategies inspired by medical advances, state-level protections, human rights models, and activists across the globe whose courage and determination are making a difference."
-excerpted from Hachette Books