The Meteor

In New York on July 9th? Please join our very own Cindi Leive and Samhita Mukhopadhyay, along with Galina Espinoza, EIC of Flow Space, to talk about redefining ambition and female success! RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/gq5MrAxe

Two years ago today, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. But the Dobbs decision has had an impact far beyond American borders. ⁠ ⁠ “The U.S. is a norm-setter,” explains Giselle Carino, executive director of Fòs Feminista, an organization working for sexual and reproductive rights in 40 countries. “If the U.S. keeps putting money to emulate Dobbs in other countries, the consequences on women’s lives will be shattering.”⁠ ⁠ Carino, along with activists, doctors, and patients from four other countries sat down with writer Mariane Pearl as part of the Ford Foundation's #FreeFuture series to discuss the ripple effects of U.S. abortion law on the fight for reproductive justice around the world.⁠ ⁠ And while the consequences have been dire, there are reasons to be hopeful. Globally, “there is a great critical mass on the frontlines—reproductive rights activists resisting the limitations of civil liberties,” says Carino. “I want to tell American women that we are ready. We have faith in our ability to stand together because our struggles are connected.”⁠ Read more about the global impact of Dobbs: https://lnkd.in/g6C8QaqJ

🔥”Let’s light some fires,” says Amanda Zurawski.🔥 The Texas woman—who was denied lifesaving abortion care in 2022—lent her name, and the last year and a half of her life, to a lawsuit fighting her state's cruel ban. In Zurawski v. State of Texas, the court had heard from 20 women who, like her, had been refused help while experiencing pregnancy complications—women who had hemorrhaged, been forced to carry babies without skulls, or nearly died. And yet, last week, the justices still ruled not to change or amend Texas’s law, which has forced doctors to deny patients vital medical care out of fear of prosecution. The decision was heartbreaking for Zurawski, who notes that the ruling didn’t even bother to name most of her fellow plaintiffs. “They don’t even look at us as human beings,” she says. But she’s also motivated—and determined to make change, noting the fact that three of the justices on the Texas high court are up for reelection. And, as she tells Cindi Leive in our newsletter today, she's exploring a run for office. “Zurawski ’26 is probably something you’ll see.” Read their full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eJbq-8tT

Michelle Obama kept telling White House social secretary Deesha Dyer she had to tell her story. When you read this interview, you’ll understand why. Dyer talks to Rebecca Carroll about the imposter syndrome of going from community college to the White House, about her abortions—which she included in the book because they’re “a normal thing," and her hopes for Black women: “Can we just exist?” (And don’t miss her retelling of *that* moment Melania Trump handed Michelle Obama the Tiffany box at the White House: “I’m going to be for real. I don’t think Mrs. Trump had a clue…about the protocol. I think she was shocked to be there. I think they were both shocked to be there for all four years.”) Read the full interview in our newsletter, and subscribe so you don't miss an issue! https://lnkd.in/g8JrJT5G

It was an absolute honor to welcome to our office The Meteor’s Cindi Leive, CEO and co-founder and Tara Abrahams, head of impact. They graciously joined our agency this week for a conversation on careers, media and advocacy, moderated by James LaForce, which was filled with inspiration and motivation to make a difference through our work.

“You never get told your body is yours and you have the right to say no,” said preeminent disability activist and Ford Foundation Program Officer for U.S. Disability Rights Rebecca Cokley, speaking at the Free Future event on the continued reality of forced sterilization.⁠ ⁠ Cokley experienced this firsthand during the delivery of her daughter via c-section, where she overheard her anesthesiologist say to her OBGYN: “While you’re down there, why don’t you go ahead and tie her tubes?” Her painful experience is an all-too-common consequence of the Supreme Court’s 1927 ruling Buck v. Bell, which allowed states to continue to practice the heinous work of forcibly sterilizing those it deemed “unfit to reproduce.” During the twentieth century alone, roughly 70,000 Americans (mostly women of color) were forcibly sterilized—a practice activist Fannie Lou Hamer famously labeled the “Mississippi appendectomy.”⁠ ⁠ As of 2022, there are still 31 states where forced sterilization can be authorized by a judge and/or performed without consent by a doctor as long as it’s considered to be in the best interest of the patient. And the majority of these patients are people with disabilities.⁠ Read more about activists like Cokley fighting Buck v. Bell’s enduring legacy, and watch the full video of her remarks: https://lnkd.in/enqYc5QK

Today is #EqualPayDay — the day that marks how far into 2024 women have to work to make what the average white man made in 2023.⁠ ⁠ But that’s for *all* women—broken down by race, the discrepancy widens. And over the course of a 40-year career, the wage gap robs women of hundreds of thousands of dollars and delays retirement by decades, per the National Women's Law Center ⁠ Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eXxBDWwS

Out now on Audible! Join us in celebrating #InternationalWomensDay by listening to In Love And Struggle—a performance centering the lived experiences of visionary Black women and nonbinary people through storytelling, music, comedy, and monologues. The event features an outstanding, eclectic, wildly creative cast:⁠ * Actress and activist Amanda Seales * Voice actor and singer/songwriter Cree Summer * Lincoln Center’s inaugural poet-in-residence mahogany l. browne * Songwriter and multimedia artist Nona Hendryx * Writer and professor Dr. Sami Schalk * Multidisciplinary artist Sol * Comedian and actress Zainab Johnson * Writer adrienne maree brown Curated and executive produced by Rebecca Carroll, with creative director Monica L Williams, and advising creative producer Kamilah Forbes. Listen now at adbl.co/ILAS3 🎧

This week on The A Files podcast: Where do we go from here? Abortion bans, voter suppression, criminalization…the list of things standing between us and true reproductive justice can feel endless. So what will success look like? (No, it’s not begging for Roe’s return!) In the season finale, Renee Bracey Sherman and Regina Mahone talk about what they’ve learned from this season’s guests (like LaTosha Brown, Kendall Ciesemier, and Gretchen Sisson), ideas about how to get involved, and give us all hope for the future. And listeners share ways to care for one another as we find freedom. Because we will find freedom. Listen here (and revisit resources from previous episodes): https://lnkd.in/eMjab7F2

"We have to continue showing up every election, particularly for off-year and local elections, where these changes to our voting systems are often on the ballot. And we must demand that our elected officials push for systemic change to ensure everyone who is eligible to vote can." Ever wonder how a country where the vast majority of people support abortion access keeps passing such ugly abortion bans? Renee Bracey Sherman and Regina Mahone have answers (and they promise this #gerrymandering discussion won’t put you to sleep)! In the latest episode of #TheAFiles, Renee and Regina explain the link between voter suppression, racism, and abortion bans—and LaTosha Brown at #BlackVotersMatter joins to explain what’s really happening across the country, and what we can all do about it.⁠ ⁠ Head to this link (or wherever you get your podcasts) to listen: https://lnkd.in/ed2KPBQn And check out Renee and Regina's take on how #abortionrights and #votingrights are connected in Cosmopolitan below! https://lnkd.in/eu49GDib