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

Deep Rooted-Causes: How Racism & Reactivity Keep Us Stuck in Superficial Cycles

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams welcome special guest Rev. Dr. Kyle Brooks from the Methodist Theological School in Ohio to talk about racism, reactivity, and how superficial cycles are perpetuated by a refusal to engage the reality of our shared national history. With a specific centering of abortion justice, Dr. Brooks shares deeply about the nuances and tensions at play in justice work that often get overlooked, ignored, or flat-out denied as a result of the national myths our country tells about itself.

Links to discussed content:

• Critical Race Theory: A Brief History: www.nytimes.com/article/what-is-critical-race-theory.html
• Rev. David Barnhart's post about the convenience of the unborn as a group to advocate for: www.facebook.com/553606030/posts/10156549406811031?sfns=mo
• Ohio Senate Bill 304: www.dispatch.com/story/news/politics/2022/03/04/ohio-abortion-bill-requires-patients-see-doc...
• The Will to Change, by bell hooks: https://bellhooksbooks.com/product/the-will-to-change/
• Black Men Unlearning, Rev. Dr. Kyle Brook's podcast: https://www.instagram.com/blackmenunlearning/

Music by Korbin Jones

A Long Way Off: Ahmaud Arbery, Reproductive Rights, and the Ongoing Struggle for Full Justice

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams sit with the tension between celebrating half measures of justice and staying unsatisfied with anything short of a thriving, liberated future for all. Connecting the accountability doled out to the murderers of Ahmaud Arbery with a holistic understanding of reproductive justice, Kelley and Terry hold confessional space by acknowledging how much work our society has yet to do in seeking true liberation.

Links to discussed content:

• A jury finds Ahmaud Arbery's 3 killers guilty of federal hate crimes: www.npr.org/2022/02/22/1082225480/ahmaud-arbery-hate-crimes
• 'Father Of Gynecology,' Who Experimented On Slaves, No Longer On Pedestal In NYC: www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/04/17/603163394/-father-of-gynecology-who-experimented-on-slaves-no-longer-on-pedestal-in-nyc
• The Verdict isn't the end of the story, a reflection on Derek Chauvin's conviction: www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/verdict-isnt-end-this-story/
• Killing the Black Body, by Dorothy Roberts: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/155575/killing-the-black-body-by-dorothy-roberts/
• Mortality rate for Black babies is cut dramatically when Black doctors care for them after birth, researchers say: www.washingtonpost.com/health/black-baby-death-rate-cut-by-black-doctors/2021/01/08/e9f0f850-238a-11eb-952e-0c475972cfc0_story.html
• Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health: An Overview: https://www.kff.org/report-section/racial-disparities-in-maternal-and-infant-health-an-overview-issue-brief/

Music by Korbin Jones

This Great Cloud of Witnesses: Black Perseverance and the Power of Everyday Afrofuturism

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams talk about Black perseverance and Black History Month, calling to mind the powerful witness of ancestors who daily dreamed & worked for a positive, joy-filled future. Kelley and Terry address Afrofuturism in everyday situations, calling to mind the extraordinary power in ordinary acts of resistance, resilience, and reproductive rebellion.

• Emergent Strategy, by adrienne maree brown: www.akpress.org/emergentstrategy.html
• Pleasure Activism, by adrienne maree brown: www.akpress.org/pleasure-activism-e-book.html
• Reproductive Justice definition from Sister Song: www.sistersong.net/reproductive-justice
• Appalachian Elegy, by bell hooks: www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/148751/appalachian-elegy-1-6
• Join our Restorative & Transformative Justice Training on April 14th: www.faithchoiceohio.org/trainings
• Read a wrap-up of our 2021 Restorative & Transformative Justice Book Club: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/building-safe-and-sustainable-communities-one-book-and-practice...
• Read a wrap-up of our 2021 Abolition Reads Book Club: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/abortion-access-and-abolition-how-to-cultivate-hope-in-2022

Music by Korbin Jones

Celebrating Roe (Part 2): Abortion Patients Share Their Stories

In commemoration of the 49th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision at the U.S. Supreme Court, we bring you this second installment of a two-part special series called “Celebrating Roe.” Intended to center abortion patients and hold space for their stories, hear from actual patients about their abortion experiences & how abortion has blessed their lives. This week, Kierre and Chrissy from Patients to Advocates share their abortion stories with our Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams. Listen to last week’s episode for more abortion stories from the other half of this two-part special!

Links to discussed content:

• Patients to Advocates: www.patientstoadvocates.org/

• Sister Song's Definition of Reproductive Justice: www.sistersong.net/reproductive-justice
  
  
• Termination for Medical Reasons: Moms Share Their Stories of Pregnancy Loss: www.today.com/parents/termination-medical-reasons-moms-share-tfmr-stories-t187536

• Judicial Bypass Procedures: Undue Burdens for Young People Seeking Safe Abortion Care: www.advocatesforyouth.org/resources/policy-advocacy/judicial-bypass-procedures/
  
  
• Ohio Law Around Judicial Bypass: https://judicialbypasswiki.ifwhenhow.org/wiki/ohio/
  
  
• As the Supreme Court Considers Roe v. Wade, A Look at How Abortion Became Legal: www.npr.org/2021/11/29/1056129045/as-the-supreme-court-considers-roe-v-wade-a-look-at-how-abortion-became-legal

Music by Korbin Jones

 

Celebrating Roe (Part 1): Abortion Patients Share Their Stories

In commemoration of the 49th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision at the U.S. Supreme Court, we bring you this two-part special series called “Celebrating Roe.” Intended to center abortion patients and hold space for their stories, hear from actual patients about their abortion experiences & how abortion has blessed their lives. This week, Rachel and Kathy from Patients to Advocates share their abortion stories with our Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams. Listen in next week for more abortion stories for the second half of this two-part series!

Links to discussed content:

• Patients to Advocates: www.patientstoadvocates.org/
• Abortion is Legal in Ohio: A Resource for Those Seeking Abortion (Not CPCs): www.abortionislegalinohio.com/
• All the Bullshit Ways Those "Crisis Pregnancy Centers" Keep Women From Getting Abortions: www.allure.com/story/how-crisis-pregnancy-centers-deceive-women-on-abortion
• Expose Fake Clinics: www.exposefakeclinics.com/
• Learn More about Self-Managed Abortion: www.faithchoiceohio.org/trainings
• The Hidden Link Between Domestic Violence and Abortion: https://rewirenewsgroup.com/article/2019/10/24/the-hidden-link-between-domestic-violence-and-abortion/
• As the Supreme Court Considers Roe v. Wade, A Look at How Abortion Became Legal: www.npr.org/2021/11/29/1056129045/as-the-supreme-court-considers-roe-v-wade-a-look-at-how-abortion-became-legal

Music by Korbin Jones

New Year, New Name: Introducing Faith Choice Ohio!

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams talk about our new name, what that change means for our work, and all the new trainings, opportunities, and work awaiting our Faith Choice Ohio team in the new year. (SPOILER ALERT: Faith Choice Ohio is still local, still faithful, and still hella pro-abortion in 2022!)

Links for discussed content:

• If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice: www.ifwhenhow.org/

• Catholics for Choice: www.catholicsforchoice.org/

• New Year, New Name: Why We Changed Our Name to Faith Choice Ohio: www.faithchoiceohio.org/blog/new-year-new-name

• Upcoming FCO Trainings: www.faithchoiceohio.org/trainings

• Planning for Post-Roe America: How Marginalized Communities Continue to Lead the Way: https://faithchoiceohio.podbean.com/e/planning-for-post-roe-america-how-marginalized-communities-continue-to-lead-the-way/

Music by Korbin Jones

Faith in Preterm: The Prayerfully Pro-Choice Values at the Heart of Ohio’s Largest Independent Abortion Clinic

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams are joined by Catrina Otonoga, Policy and Legal Strategies Director for Preterm. Catrina walks us through the faith-rooted origins of Preterm, how their Cleveland location has regional & global impact, and how values of patient-centered care and community-focused leadership guide the clinic that provides 1 in every 4 abortions performed in the state of Ohio.

Links to discussed content: 

• Support Preterm, Ohio's only nonprofit abortion clinic: www.preterm.org/
• "How Clergy Set the Standard for Abortion Care," Clergy Consultation Service: https://amp.theatlantic.com/amp/article/484517/
• Parents Have Abortions, "The Mother Majority": https://slate.com/human-interest/2011/10/most-surprising-abortion-statistic-the-majority-of-women-who-terminate-pregnancies-are-already-mothers.amp 

Music by Korbin Jones

Rest & Rigor: How To Keep Moving Towards Justice without Burning Out

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams address the paradox of seeking rest while never giving up the struggle for justice in this episode that gets real about the anxious pain that waiting can inflict on people who long for real reproductive liberation.

Kelley and Terry specifically explore the paradox of needing rest in order to continue a seemingly endless struggle, giving strategies for managing polarities of self-care and revolutionary activism to meet this historical moment in the life of our nation.

Links to discussed content: 

• Abortion is Legal in Ohio: www.abortionislegalinohio.com/
• America’s deep political divisions play out on courthouse steps as justices hear abortion case: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/01/abortion-political-divisions-play-out-supreme-court 
• #NoNeglectNovember: "Art as Self Care with Paisha Thomas" https://fb.watch/9F5mPhqD4U/ 
• #NoNeglectNovember: "Music as Self Care with Amber Knicole" https://fb.watch/9F5oac47YQ/ 
• Kelley leads a meditation for visualizing your Happy Place: https://fb.watch/9F5kcJlwzm/ 

Music by Korbin Jones

Safe, Legal, and Free: The Importance of Agency for Survivors of Human Trafficking and for Reproductive Freedom

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams talk about moral agency & freedom with Dr. Yvonne Zimmerman, Associate Professor of Christian Ethics and Associate Dean at Methodist Theological School in Ohio. While drawing out the explicit connections between bodily autonomy in the experience of human trafficking survivors and the struggle for reproductive freedom, this episode touches on the damaging aspects of Christian purity culture and how infantilizing survivors of violence does real harm.

Links to discussed content:

• Bio for Dr. Yvonne Zimmerman: www.mtso.edu/about-mtso/faculty-directory/yvonne-zimmerman/
• Book by Dr. Zimmerman: "Other Dreams of Freedom: Religion, Sex, and Human Trafficking"

Music by Korbin Jones

I Consent: The Importance of Bodily Autonomy at Every Age

Faith Organizers Kelley Fox and Terry Williams sit down with Dr. Sue Ellen Braunlin, a medical doctor and comprehensive sexuality educator, to talk about consent, sex education, and what the future holds for reproductive freedom from a public health perspective.

Sue Ellen gives listeners a great overview of the importance of sexuality education in the lives of children, outlining how important healthy ideas of consent and bodily autonomy are for the development of children, youth, and adults.

Links to discussed content: 

• Indiana RCRC: https://twitter.com/ircrc
• Our Whole Lives Training: www.uua.org/re/owl
• "Keep Mary's Name Outta Your Mouth,"
  a blog article/video sermon on Mary and consent, by our Executive Director Elaina Ramsey: www.ohiorcrc.org/blog/keep-marys-name-outta-your-mouth?rq=mary
• "Mary had a baby (by choice)" shirts in our Bonfire store: www.bonfire.com/pro-choice-mary-white-text/
• "Consent is Holy: Why Consent Shouldn't Just Be Expected But Celebrated," a blog article by our Faith Organizer Kelley Fox: www.ohiorcrc.org/blog/consent-is-holy-why-consent-shouldnt-just-be-expected-but-celebrated 

Music by Korbin Jones