Could domestic violence advocates get prosecuted after Dobbs?

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     February 22, 2024 The Alabama Supreme Court's ruling this week that frozen embryos are considered children has already prompted the state’s largest hospital to pause IVF treatments. Make no mistake: The decision is one of the many ripple effects of mounting abortion restrictions since the end of Roe—a theme I’ve been [reporting on the last few months]( with the support of a national fellowship from [USC Annenberg’s Center for Health Journalism](. Today, Mother Jones published the result of my reporting, a [deep-dive look]( at another of these ripple effects: how abortion bans silence advocates who support pregnant victims of domestic and sexual violence. To be clear, the work has always been emotionally grueling, and staffers have long been underpaid. But post-Dobbs, particularly in states that criminalize the “aiding and abetting" of abortion, domestic and sexual violence workers find themselves regularly wondering, as one source told me, "[What can I even say without having to go to jail?](" Heather Williams is one of these workers left without answers. An advocate with Domestic Violence Intervention Services in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a state with a near-total abortion ban and one of the highest rates of intimate partner violence in the country, Williams told me the heartbreaking story of a survivor who, last summer, found out she was pregnant following a rape. As she stood next to the survivor, Heather knew the young woman didn’t want to be pregnant. But she also didn’t want to risk legal repercussions if she initiated a discussion about how the survivor could access an abortion. “I ain’t trying to lose my whole livelihood because I’ve given someone this advice,” she told me. I hope you give these workers’ stories of struggle—and resistance—a read. Because as the assault on reproductive rights spills over to IVF, birth control, abortion pills, and domestic violence work, it's on us to stay informed. —Julianne McShane Advertisement [Blue rectangle with the book jacket and a positive endorsement]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [With Its Top Investor in Jail, a Pro-Trump Social Media Site Suffers Mass Layoffs]( Gettr was promoted by MAGA heavies like Steve Bannon and Jason Miller. It's now close to shutting down, sources say. BY DAN FRIEDMAN SPONSORED CONTENT BY COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS   The Danger Imperative: Violence, Death, and the Soul of Policing With unprecedented access to three police departments and drawing on more than 100 interviews and 1,000 hours on patrol, this is a trailblazing, on-the-ground account of modern policing that shows how the institution reinforces a cultural preoccupation with violence through academy training, departmental routines, powerful symbols, and officers’ street-level behavior. [Get Danger Imperative here](. [Trending] [Obsessed: It’s 2024 and conservatives still can’t stop worrying about Michelle Obama]( BY STEPHANIE MENCIMER   [No vaccine? No problem! Florida wants your unvaccinated kids in school during a measles outbreak.]( BY KIERA BUTLER   [It’s no secret our tax system punishes low-income people. It doesn't have to.]( BY MAYA SRIKRISHNAN AND ASHLEY CLARKE   [Methane-spewing gas and oil drillers owe the US billions—in theory]( BY NAVEENA SADASIVAM Advertisement [Blue rectangle with the book jacket and a positive endorsement]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( ["What can I even say without having to go to jail?"]( The end of Roe has hamstrung advocates for pregnant victims of domestic and sexual violence. BY JULIANNE MCSHANE [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755