[[link removed]] Weekly Digest
Weekly Digest
Letter from an Editor | February 4, 2023
Dear John,
This week marked the beginning of Black History Month—and while the accomplishments of Black feminists are worth celebrating all year long, we at Ms . wanted to spotlight the lives and legacies of some of the groundbreaking Black feminists who have been featured on our magazine’s covers and in its pages over the past 50 years.
From Anita Hill’s powerful breakdown of how sexual harassment holds women back in the workplace from our Jan./Feb. 1992 issue, to our 2022 commemoration of bell hooks—the Black feminist guide who saved so many of our lives—you can dive into the archive with us, at MsMagazine.com. (And be sure to stay tuned throughout the year for more historical looks back as we celebrate 50 years of reporting, rebelling and truth telling—and look towards the next 50).
Speaking of Black feminist leaders, this week we applauded Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), who along with Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), introduced a joint resolution to affirm the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and remove the arbitrary deadline for its ratification, recognizing the amendment as part of the Constitution.
“Our resolution will help address centuries of gender disparities in America by removing the unnecessary barriers that have prevented us from enshrining the dignity, humanity and equality of all people into our Constitution,” said Pressley. “We as women have done our job, the states have done their job, and now it’s time for Congress to do its job and pass this resolution.”
Finally, later today anti-abortion activists will congregate across the U.S. for a day of protests targeting pharmacies that, in the wake of a recent FDA ruling, have announced plans to become certified to dispense mifepristone (abortion pills)—which include Walgreens, CVS and Rite Aid. Some of the groups behind the protests, advocates note, have connections to violent, anti-abortion extremists.
“These extremists are infamous for stalking physicians, invading clinics, and bullying patients and clinic staff,” said duVergne Gaines, director of Feminist Majority’s National Clinic Access Project, speaking to Ms . “Groups like PAAU, the Survivors and Live Action are doing their best to grab headlines and terrorize pharmacies out of providing critical access to the abortion pill, but they must be stopped.”
Mark our words—when it comes to accessing abortion, whether it’s at the pharmacy or at the clinic or online, feminists won’t back down.
Onward,
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Kathy Spillar
Executive Editor
P.S. — We’re thrilled to announce that you can now pre-order our extraordinary book, due out later this year: 50 YEARS OF Ms.: THE BEST OF THE PATHFINDING MAGAZINE THAT IGNITED A REVOLUTION (Alfred A. Knopf). Pre-order from Indie Bound [[link removed]] , Amazon [[link removed]] , or Barnes & Noble [[link removed]] today!
This Week's Must-Reads from Ms.
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‘They Made History’: Ms. Magazine’s Fave Features of Strong Black Women Over the Years [[link removed]] The ERA Has Been Ratified, Declares New Congressional Resolution [[link removed]]
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Anti-Abortion Groups Try to Intimidate Pharmacies Planning to Dispense Abortion Pills [[link removed]] Violence Against Jacinda Ardern and Other Women Political Leaders Is an Attack on Democracy Itself [[link removed]]
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New Film Documents Campaign for Universal Abortion Pill Access in the U.S. [[link removed]] February 2023 Reads for the Rest of Us [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Tune in for a new episode of Ms. magazine's podcast, On the Issues with Michele Goodwin on
Apple Podcasts [[link removed]] + Spotify [[link removed]] .
Before Roe v. Wade , if you were in need of an abortion in Chicago, there was a number you could call, run by young women who called themselves Jane. They’d provide abortions to women who had nowhere else to turn. It was started by Heather Booth when she was 19 years old. In this episode, Booth joins Dr. Goodwin to discuss the history of the Jane Collective and the connections between our pre-Roe past and post-Roe future. Where do we go from here?
We hope you'll listen, subscribe, rate and review today!
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U.S. democracy is at a dangerous inflection point—from the demise of abortion rights, to a lack of pay equity and parental leave, to skyrocketing maternal mortality, and attacks on trans health. Left unchecked, these crises will lead to wider gaps in political participation and representation. For 50 years, Ms . has been forging feminist journalism—reporting, rebelling and truth-telling from the front-lines, championing the Equal Rights Amendment, and centering the stories of those most impacted. With all that’s at stake for equality, we are redoubling our commitment for the next 50 years. In turn, we need your help, Support Ms. today with a donation—any amount that is meaningful to you [[link removed]] . We are grateful for your loyalty and ferocity .
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