Boots on the Ground in Texas with Cecile Richards

Fall of Roe

On this second episode of the Fall of Roe, Chris Charbonneau is joined by Cecile Richards, former president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, present community organizer, proud supporter of Beto O’Rourke, and a former First Daughter of Texas. The pair open the conversation talking about what it may look like when one has no control over their own pregnancy. Women are not only isolated and left with little to no hope, but they are also forced to resort to unsafe abortion methods. After all, abortion doesn’t stop just because it’s deemed illegal, it merely becomes more dangerous. We already see this taking place in Texas: a state that is already experiencing fallout across the Mexican border from individuals seeking cheaper, more accessible healthcare.

The pair go on to discuss the possibility of a nationwide ban on abortions and how the Republicans are lying to the American public to make that happen. To ensure a safer future with legal abortions, Cecile urges the younger audience to start taking part in the fight; they’re the strongest and most passionate force we have. She also notes that it’s important to share abortion stories and awaken others to the importance of abortion and prenatal healthcare. Above all else, though, she believes in the power of the ballot. That’s why she’s working with Beto O’Rourke in Texas to help secure his bid and a future for safe, legal abortion in the state of Texas.

The Finer Details of This Episode:

• What it looks like when you don’t have control over your pregnancy
• The isolation of women by the Supreme Court
• Fallout across the Mexican border
• Republicans lying to the American public
• The possibility of a future nationwide ban on abortions
• The importance of sharing stories
• The power of young people
• The state of affairs in Texas (Abbott v. Beto)
• Abortion will always take place

Quotes:

“Millions of people have never lived in a country where abortion was illegal completely.”

“I think that what is the dynamic we're looking at here is people who really never thought about this issue, because they didn't have to, are now grappling with what this means for themselves, their community, their students, their daughters, their sons, their, you know, you name it. And that is an unpredictable element in these midterm elections.”

“It's not just that travel is a challenge for many people. It's an impossibility.”

“And now we're seeing American corporations beginning to talk about how they're going to exfiltrate their key employees into Safe States for health care. It's like, really America, are we going to have this conversation about exfiltrating people without having the conversation about how this should not become policy?”

“Keep in mind, everybody, women are not mentioned in the Constitution. Nothing that we need is in the Constitution. That wasn't who was writing the Constitution at the time. And so, you know, this is dangerous on so many levels.”

“I think if Cecile and I can illustrate anything, it’s like: be afraid right now and do everything in your power to prevent where we are.”

“I think, for older women, like myself, this is an issue that I've fought on my whole life, but where the energy and the leadership is going to come from is young people who just lost a right that they never even knew could be taken from them.”

“Your state legislatures need to know that they don't get to do this where you live without hearing from you.”

“The people, of course, that are bearing the brunt of this right now in the state of Texas are women with low incomes, women who live in rural small town Texas who don't have the resources and the access to patient navigators, black women, brown women, and women who have least access to healthcare in the state of Texas.”

‘Mississippi is the poorest state in the country, and their maternal mortality rate is twice the national average.”

“So don’t tell me these folks care about babies, care about women. They don’t. They care about politics and that’s all this is about. We have to do more to point out that the same people who are voting to ban abortion have done everything in their power to keep people from having affordable healthcare access, to addressing maternal mortality rates, to addressing programs that help alleviate poverty among children and families. So they just can’t have it both ways.”

Links:

Fall of Roe Homepage

Cecile Richards on Instagram

Cecile Richards on Twitter