Right now, we face critical challenges to women's equality, both in the U.S. and around the world—but it can be hard to keep up. In this weekly roundup, find the absolute need-to-know news for feminists.

Clinic escorts stand in front of the EMW Womens Surgical Center to protect patients from anti-abortion demonstrators on May 8, 2021—Mother’s Day—in Louisville, Ky. As a result of a recent state law, the two remaining abortion clinics in the state, Planned Parenthood and EMW, ceased offering abortion services. (Jon Cherry / Getty Images)

BY CARRIE N. BAKER | Kentucky has become the first state since Roe v. Wade in 1973 to effectively ban all abortion services in the state. On Wednesday, April 13, the Kentucky legislature overrode Democratic Governor Andy Beshear to pass a law banning abortion after 15 weeks and placing restrictions on earlier abortions that are currently impossible to meet. As a result, the two remaining abortion clinics in the state—Planned Parenthood and EMW Women’s Surgical Center in Louisville—ceased offering abortion services on Thursday.

The law requires abortion providers to file paperwork on each abortion, but the forms don’t yet exist. In addition, providers of medication abortion must register with the state, but the state hasn’t yet set up a system to register them.

“The law is a 72-page labyrinth of very complicated restrictions that cannot be complied with until the state makes the forms and the other infrastructure necessary to comply,” said Brigitte Amiri, deputy director of the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project. “This has shut down abortion temporarily for now because it’s impossible to comply with this law.”

The law has no exception for survivors of rape and incest, nor for people for whom pregnancy poses significant health risks. The law also requires providers to report the full name, age, hometown, race, ethnicity and health status of the sexual partner of a woman who wants an abortion—even if she is a rape survivor.

(Click here to read more)

We know it's hard to keep up with everything going on in the world right now. That's why going forward, we'll provide a weekly roundup of the stories we think are important that Ms. may not have covered. Here's what we're reading this week: 

• "Heartbeats, abortion and Texas" — BBC (feat. Ms. digital editor Roxy Szal)
• "How Not to Get Arrested for Miscarriage or Abortion: A Practical Guide" — Jezebel
• "Distraught over orders to investigate trans kids’ families, Texas child welfare workers are resigning" — Texas Tribune

Tune in for a new episode of Ms. magazine's podcast, On the Issues with Michele Goodwin on Apple Podcasts + Spotify.

Last month, we tuned in to Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's hearings in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. How did a process meant to be rigorous, but respectful and fair turn into days of badgering, bullying, and a litmus test on religion? And what happens next in the confirmation process? Join us to break it all down with leading legal experts.

We hope you'll listen, subscribe, rate and review today!

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