abortion Archives - Chicago Reader

A woman stands with her back to the camera wearing a jacket that reads "here for abortion justice"

Out of sight, out of mind

by Maia McDonald November 13, 2023November 13, 2023

More than a year after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that legalized abortions nationwide, local abortion funds and abortion care providers are still reeling as many navigate a dip in donations and a new state of reproductive health care in […]

A white woman with blonde hair pulled back in a pony tail stands in front of an office desk. She is wearing a purple turtleneck sweater and a long beige skirt, holding a sign that reads "It's a child, not a choice."

Theater Review

Monologuing: Title Ten at Artemisia Theatre

by Amanda Finn November 30, 2022November 30, 2022

Int. messy Chicago apartment, unseasonably hot end of November. Being a theater critic can be so isolating when you don’t fit the story being told. Most of the time, I sit through shows that center on the cishet male experience or at the very least shows that don’t pass the Bechdel Test. I am not […]

A white woman in a brown shirt and black face mask stands left, holding a script. On the right is a Black man, also holding a script and wearing a black face mask. He is pointing upward with his right hand

Arts & Culture

Our bodies, but whose choice?

by Jack Helbig November 23, 2022November 23, 2022

It was around 2010 that writer-actor-director Julie Proudfoot was sitting in a Starbucks at the IC station downtown, waiting for the South Shore line to take her home, when she became aware of two young couples sitting at an adjacent table. “And the males were not only saying sexist things to the young women,” Proudfoot […]

Agenda

Jane, Yola, Field, Frunchroom

by Micco Caporale and Salem Collo-Julin September 13, 2022September 13, 2022

Today and tomorrow are two of a slate of Free Admission Days offered by the Field Museum (1400 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr.) through November. Illinois residents with proof of residency (valid photo identification plus a copy of your lease, library card, utility bill, or a check stub from work) receive free basic admission, which […]

On Politics

The choice is yours, voters

by Ben Joravsky September 9, 2022September 9, 2022

Content warning: This column contains a reference to sexual violence. As I write, it’s Labor Day—traditionally, the start of the election season. That means “normal” people start to sorta pay attention to what’s going on in politics, as opposed to political junkies, like myself, who never stop paying attention. As such, it’s my pleasure to […]

a blond girl sitting on the toilet, clothed and surrounded by boxes, holding a pregnancy test. Her friend leans against the tub.

Film

Look Both Ways

by Noah Berlatsky August 19, 2022August 19, 2022

Wanuri Kahiu’s Look Both Ways in other contexts might simply be a fairly inoffensive feel-good romance riff. As it is, though, the film’s lack of courage is painful and unforgivable.

On Politics

State of anxiety

by Ben Joravsky August 11, 2022August 11, 2022

With each passing day, I get more anxious about the Democratic strategy of promoting MAGA candidates like Darren Bailey in Republican primaries. Oh, I understand the logic—it’s an attempt to make sure they’re facing an opponent the polls show is easier to beat. In this case, internal Democratic polls apparently showed Bailey, an extremist, was […]

a protest sign held up that reads "Abortion is Healthcare"

Columns & Opinion

Beware, Illinois

by Ben Joravsky July 21, 2022July 28, 2022

Content warning: This story contains references to sexual violence. I think we can all agree that MAGA’s unprecedented obsession with truth in regard to the rape of a ten-year-old girl in Ohio was really a sneaky attempt to divert attention from this rather unsettling fact. It’s illegal for a ten-year-old girl to get an abortion […]

A Washington DC protest, view of the back of a white person holding up a sign that states "Let's Talk about the Elephant in the Womb"

Columns & Opinion

Trigger’s back

by Ben Joravsky July 6, 2022July 6, 2022

As you know by now, the MAGA Six on the Supreme Court eviscerated abortion rights with their recent anti-Roe ruling, thus triggering local laws that instantaneously made abortion illegal in a dozen or so states. None of which were Illinois. And for that we must at least partially thank former Governor Bruce Rauner. Words I […]

Film

The Janes is a call to action

by Kat Sachs May 18, 2022May 18, 2022

“What we know for a fact is that making abortion illegal does not stop women from seeking abortions, it just keeps them from getting safe abortions.”

three women smile or laugh against a dark wooded background

Film

Happening

by Kat Sachs May 13, 2022May 12, 2022

The no-holds-barred approach to the [abortion] procedure and its aftermath is the kind of interpretation of real life that great cinema does best.

Woman holding sign reading "Remember when you said I was overreacting?" with text underlined in red. She is standing on the sidewalk in front of others at the pro-choice rally in Chicago on May 7.

On Culture

The end of Roe

by Deanna Isaacs May 11, 2022May 12, 2022

Regarding the recently revealed U.S. Supreme Court draft ruling on Roe v. Wade: WTF? Because, it’s the F we’re talking about, right? That little itch we’re biologically programmed to scratch and its inordinate, inequitable aftermath? As I’ve opined here before, if cisgender men were the ones carrying a pregnancy for nine months, suffering through an […]