In brief: Abortion portrayals in pop culture go way back. Abortion in pop culture isn’t new. But this kind of in-dept analysis and, frankly, just the cataloging of abortion themes and storylines certainly is. Qualitative sociologist Gretchen Sisson humors my comedy nerd moment about Michele Wolf, and then goes back through recent and far history to outline the surprising places abortion portrayal is done well (We love you, “Maude”!) and the (un)surprising places it deviates heavily from the statistical norms and real human experiences, leaving the culture with the impression that is inherently fraught and often deadly, when in fact only the restrictions make situations fraught and serious complications are a statistical anomaly.

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Easy download/stream:

Enhanced audio: The @ANSIRH #Abortion Onscreen Project w/@gesisson — #KatieSpeakShow Ep133 5/19/2018

Links to on-air references:

My take…

“Six Books Written by Teen Mothers You Should Read This Mother’s Day” (or any day) via Gloria Malone at Rewire News

“‘THE HANDMAID’S TALE’ AND THE REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS MOVEMENT’S WHITE SUPREMACY PROBLEM” via Afropunk.com

Audre Lorde self-care quote via Know Your IX: “Dealing with Activist Burn-Out and Self-Care”

Interviews…

Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) Onscreen Project: Abortion on Film & TV via ANSIRH Twitter

Gretchen Sisson on the Michelle Wolf “don’t knock it” joke

“Women’s abortion stories are still underrepresented on TV: Despite being a very common experience for American women, abortion remains underexplored in pop culture” via Salon

“‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ ‘Black Mirror’ and the bleak future of abortion on TV: It’s not just Gilead’s regressive dystopia — too frequently, futuristic TV looks back at abortion, not forward” via Salon

Follow my guests…

Gretchen Sisson: Twitter; ANSIRH Twitter; Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) website

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