R-Soul: Reclaiming the Soul of Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice

Every Day is Election Day: A Politics of Constant Care

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams debrief what the Issue 1 “Citizens, Not Politicians” election result means for the future of representative government in Ohio.

While discussing the role of misinformation, voter suppression, and depressed voter turnout on the measure’s failure, Kelley and Terry help listeners refocus on the holistic, consistent ways we can all show up for one another more often than once a year on Election Day.

Links to discussed content:

• Ohio Secretary of State election results for Issue 1 "Citizens, Not Politicians": https://liveresults.ohiosos.gov/

• Abortion Rights Ballot Measures Win in 7 Out of 10 U.S. States: www.guttmacher.org/2024/11/abortion-rights-state-ballot-measures-2024

• Fund practical support for abortion seekers with The Jubilee Fund: www.faithchoiceohio.org/jubileefund-donate

• Restorative and Transformative Justice Training: www.faithchoiceohio.org/restorative-and-transformative-justice-training

• Voting as Community Care & Harm Reduction: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/voting-as-community-care-and-harm-reduction

Music by Korbin Jones

What the Hell Is Gerrymandering? Unpacking the Undemocratic Problem in Ohio’s Legislative Process

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams tear into gerrymandering, breaking down the term’s definition, examples of it in action in Ohio, and outlining the impact it has on issues like abortion, the economy, and labor.

Drawing the connection between Ohio’s 2024 Yes on Issue 1 campaign and the (hopeful!) death of gerrymandering, Kelley and Terry explore the harm unfair legislative maps have done locally while looking forward to what a world without gerrymandering could look like in the Buckeye state.

Links to discussed content:

• What's at stake for Ohio's gerrymandering future this November: www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/ohios-legacy-gerrymandering-could-end-november
• A history of the fight for fair maps in Ohio: https://my.lwv.org/sites/default/files/leagues/wysiwyg/%5Bcurrent-user%3Aog-user-node%3A1%3Atitle%5D/ohios_gerrymanding_problem.pdf
• The Ohio Secretary of State Legislative Maps Tool: www.ohiosos.gov/elections/ohio-candidates/district-maps/
• Dave's Redistricting Maps tool (with better representation of map details): https://davesredistricting.org/maps#state::OH
• Impact of Ohio's 2024 Issue 1 on Black Voters: https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/10/22/black-voters-in-ohio-will-be-impacted-by-issue-1-how-depends-on-who-you-ask/

Music by Korbin Jones

Citizens Not Politicians: Understanding the Movement for Fair Maps in Ohio

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams are joined by special guest Mia Lewis, Associate Director of Common Cause Ohio, talking all about Citizens Not Politicians — the 2024 ballot initiative campaign to ban gerrymandering in Ohio.

A longtime veteran of the fight for fair maps, Mia helps explain the rationale behind having citizens draw Ohio voting maps instead of politicians, outlining previous pitfalls and giving Kelley and Terry a look at what the future could hold if Ohioans are successful at voting YES on Issue 1 in 2024.

Links to discussed content:

• Common Cause Ohio: www.commoncause.org/ohio/
• Citizens Not Politicians (Ballot Initiative Campaign): www.citizensnotpoliticians.org
• Ohio’s Gerrymandering Problem: Why Haven’t We Fixed This Yet? A Report from the League of Women Voters of Ohio and Common Cause Ohio: https://my.lwv.org/sites/default/files/leagues/wysiwyg/%5Bcurrent-user%3Aog-user-node%3A1%3Atitle%5D/ohios_gerrymanding_problem.pdf
• Background on Ohio’s Failed Mapmaking in 2022: www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/timeline-ohios-gerrymandered-maps-how-ohio-politicians-defied-court

Music by Korbin Jones

Yes on 1: How Ohio Can Fix a 100-Year Problem in 2024

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams welcome back Jen Miller, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio (LWVO). Our first repeat guest, in this episode Jen breaks down everything voters need to know about Ohio’s 2024 Issue 1 ballot campaign “Citizens Not Politicians.”

Self-described as “fiercely nonpartisan,” the LWVO has been at the forefront of fighting gerrymandering in Ohio for well over 100 years. Jen helps Kelley and Rev. Terry cut through the hype with history and hard facts, laying out why Citizens Not Politicians is supported by Republicans, Democrats, and Independents across Ohio & why a Yes on 1 is so important to Ohioans this year.

Links to discussed content:

• League of Women Voters of Ohio: www.lwvohio.org/ 
• Citizens Not Politicians: www.citizensnotpoliticians.org/
• LWV Ohio FAQ on the Citizens Not Politicians ballot initiative: www.lwvohio.org/citizens-not-politicians-faq
• Ohio's Gerrymandering Problem: https://my.lwv.org/sites/default/files/leagues/wysiwyg/%5Bcurrent-user%3Aog-user-node%3A1%3Atitle%5D/ohios_gerrymanding_problem.pdf
• Timeline of Ohio's Gerrymandered Maps: www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/timeline-ohios-gerrymandered-maps-how-ohio-politicians-defied-court 
• Proportionality and Ohio’s legislative map mapping process: www.dispatch.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/08/11/ohio-redistricting-how-does-prioritizing-proportionality-affect-maps/74631944007/
• "Slay the Dragon" Film: www.slaythedragonfilm.com/

• R-Soul Episode 109 — A Bone to Pick: https://faithchoiceohio.podbean.com/e/a-bone-to-pick-how-ohios-supreme-court-wildness-will-affect-reproductive-freedom/

Music by Korbin Jones

A Bone To Pick: How Ohio’s Supreme Court Wildness Will Affect Reproductive Freedom

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams talk chicken wings and all the repro things, exploring how a laughable Ohio Supreme Court decision about bones in boneless wings foreshadows some sad days for the future of court-based reproductive freedom wins in Ohio’s immediate future.

With a good dose of levity, Kelley and Terry outline how Faith Choice Ohio plans to stay engaged in the fight for reproductive health, rights, and justice after Ohio passed the monumental 2023 ballot initiative, acknowledging that the fight is far from over despite new changes to the state’s constitution.

Links to discussed content:

• Boneless Chicken Wing Decision from the Ohio Supreme Court: www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/rod/docs/pdf/0/2024/2024-ohio-2787.pdf\
• Very Demure, Very Mindful Trend: www.cnbctv18.com/world/the-very-demure-very-mindful-meme-trend-what-it-is-and-how-it-started-19461855.htm
• Commentary on the Chicken Wing Decision Article: https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/07/30/ohio-supreme-court-majority-ruling-that-boneless-wings-can-have-bones-is-an-embarassment
• Battle of Yorktown, Hamilton: https://genius.com/Original-broadway-cast-of-hamilton-yorktown-the-world-turned-upside-down-lyrics
• Faith Choice Ohio's Restorative & Transformative Justice Training: www.faithchoiceohio.org/restorative-and-transformative-justice-training
• Demon Slayer Season 3, Episode 11, A Connected Bond: Daybreak and First Light: www.crunchyroll.com/watch/GD9UV8G2W/a-connected-bond-daybreak-and-first-light

Music by Korbin Jones

Photo: "Wendy's Spicy Chipotle Boneless Wings 2" by theimpulsivebuy, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. 

The Be-All End-All: Why Immediate Support & Strategic Advocacy Are Both Necessary for Collective Liberation

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams dive into the long-standing tension in the repro freedom movement between immediate structural support and long-term advocacy. As abortion funding and mutual aid priorities are advanced alongside litigation and culture change strategies, finding the balance between various essential elements of repro freedom work can seem daunting.

Come along as Kelley and Terry make sense of a sustainable balance between the immediate and the strategic, addressing specifically the recent rift between abortion support organizations and big national campaigns — all while seeing future possibilities through spiritual, literary, and liberationist lenses.

Links to discussed content:

• National Abortion Rights Groups Have the Wrong Priorities for Our Movement: www.thenation.com/article/activism/abortion-funds-movement-crisis/tnamp/ 
• Following National Funding Cuts, ‘July Was Pure Hell’ for Abortion Funds: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/2024/08/13/following-national-funding-cuts-july-was-pure-hell-for-abortion-funds/ 
• Inside the $100 million plan to restore abortion rights in America: www.politico.com/news/2024/06/24/abortion-rights-advocates-launch-100-million-campaign-00164528
• Why a Big Abortion Hotline Is Cutting Patient Support: www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2024-06-26/abortion-hotline-cuts-services-due-to-lack-of-funds
• Manhattan Planned Parenthood Will Stop Offering Abortions After 20 Weeks: www.nytimes.com/2024/08/07/nyregion/planned-parenthood-abortions-manhattan.html 
• ‘Be-All and End-All’ Origin & Meaning: https://nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/famous/be-all-and-end-all/
• Macbeth - Act 1, Scene 7: https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/macbeth/read/1/7/

Music by Korbin Jones

Four-Year Flood: Navigating Election Years Effectively

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams lay out the good, the bad, and the truly wild about election years in the U.S. With particular attention given to how major elections affect nonprofit organizations and the people we serve, Kelley and Terry give listeners a preview of things to come over the next few months by offering practical wisdom about volunteering, capacity management, setting realistic expectations, and discussing ways to keep perspective on elections as important but not all-inclusive elements of our collective struggle for justice and liberation.

Links to discussed content:

• Context on JD Vance's "childless cat lady" comment: www.npr.org/2024/07/29/nx-s1-5055616/jd-vance-childless-cat-lady-history
• If/When/How: https://ifwhenhow.org/
• Killing the Black Body, by Dorothy Roberts: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/155575/killing-the-black-body-by-dorothy-roberts/
• Buy our exclusive "Childless by Choice"merch: www.bonfire.com/store/faith4repro/

Music by Korbin Jones

Willing & Able to Be Angry: Processing Violence in the U.S.

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams address the attempted assassination of former President Trump amid the context of reproductive criminalization and ongoing violence directed at abortion clinics.

Kelley and Terry cut through the hot takes and knee-jerk reactions with some real talk about nonviolence, white male privilege, and what holistic justice should look like beyond individual instances of trauma and politically-inflated moments of national reckoning.

Links to discussed content:

• Overturning of Roe v. Wade as context: www.npr.org/2022/06/24/1102305878/supreme-court-abortion-roe-v-wade-decision-overturn

• Remembering Dr. George Tiller: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/worth-it-all

• Tiller Observance Resources: https://t.co/7AQn0ZBPwd

• 1994-2004 Federal Assault Weapons Ban: www.npr.org/2023/04/01/1167467835/school-shooting-assault-weapons-ban-history

• How Being Silently Pissed-Off is Fueling Autoimmune Disorders in Women of Color: https://fiercebymitu.com/wellness/science-women-of-color-anger-and-autoimmune-diseases/#:~:text=For%20Dr.%20Gabor%20Mate%2C%20a,autoimmune%20responses%20in%20the%20body 

• The Agnes Jackson Reynolds Fund:  www.aggiefund.org

• "Self-Managed Abortion in Good Faith" trainings: www.faithchoiceohio.org/self-managed-abortion-in-good-faith-training

• The Mask You Live In documentary: https://therepproject.org/films/the-mask-you-live-in/

• "Feminist Buzzkills" podcast: https://www.aafront.org/fbklive/

• Relearning Self-Care info: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/relearning-self-care

Music by Korbin Jones

Healthy Shouldn’t Be Hard: How Health Equity Obstacles Are Failing Patients

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Rev. Terry Williams explore health equity in Ohio through the lens of a very special case study — Kelley’s own recent experience seeking medical treatment for ongoing pain and illness symptoms.

After eventually finding out that their symptoms were actually side effects of a hormonal IUD, Kelley shares boldly about their struggle to be heard by medical professionals, the obstacles to accessing critical health information as a patient, and even the role the popular online forum Reddit played in helping unmask underlying problems.

Links to discussed content:

• What is an IUD?: www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control/iud

• The Many Options for Birth Control: www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control
  
  
• Racial Bias in Pain Assessment and Treatment Recommendations: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4843483/
  
  

• Black Women’s Mistreatment In Health Care: https://garfield-hylton.medium.com/black-womens-treatment-in-health-care-e3409ca0411b

• Reddit Healthcare Thread: www.reddit.com/r/healthcare/

• Healthcare for All Ohioans: https://spanohio.org/

Music by Korbin Jones

You Lied To Me About God: A Conversation with Dr. Jamie Marich

Faith Organizer Rev. Terry Williams and guest Dr. Jamie Marich talk about Dr. Marich’s forthcoming book and how her own understanding of reproductive freedom shaped a journey out of religious fundamentalism and into a life of transformed healing.

“You Lied To Me About God: A Memoir” details Dr. Marich’s personal history with restrictive religious systems, anti-choice social teachings, and finding internal strength to break free of hurtful systems in favor of a living faith that honors human dignity and bodily autonomy.

Links to discussed content: 

• Learn more about Jamie Marich: https://jamiemarich.com/
• You Lied to Me About God: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760810/you-lied-to-me-about-god-by-jamie-marich-phd
• Ohio Passes Issue1: https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/11/07/ohio-voters-pass-issue-1-constitutional-amendment-to-protect-abortion-and-reproductive-rights/
• Check out the Faith4Repro store with our “Abortion Is A Blessing” merch: www.bonfire.com/store/faith4repro/

Music by Korbin Jones