Multiple news sources are reporting a spectacular development that “a federal judge on Friday halted the Food and Drug Administration's approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, delivering a blow to abortion rights advocates in the wake of the Supreme Court's dismantling of the constitutional right to abortion” (CBS).
That’s a nationwide ban. It’s not set in stone yet but pretty damn close. The remaining alternative med would be super painful. Because why not. Women don’t have enough pain and struggle already.
And… this ruling could upset everything the FDA has ever approved. And… is birth control next?
Are we ready to get engaged and raise a serious ruckus yet?
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How we can go about raising a ruckus this summer in communities all over this freaking country. We can drive local narratives and get into gossip networks. Time to drive all kinds of things.
Help develop ways to put way more pressure on businesses than what’s been done lately in politics. Do businesses really want women to lose all decision-making and flexibility over their own health? Is this good for the workforce? For families? What about all the other stuff? Are Tennessee businesses okay with their racist legislature working to subvert democracy? And so on.
Work on ways to build way bigger coalitions to raise all of this ruckus nationwide. Coordinated coalitions have proven successful in pushing back authoritarian movements in countries where it’s gotten bad. We’re there, and we need way bigger and better coordinated coalitions.
There are more options, too — for support, solidarity, socializing, and whatnot.
Sure seems like a good time for a nationwide movement and commotion and ruckus and fuss and kerfuffle and reckoning, eh?
Let’s make one.
Good heavens this is going to be a mess on top of the human tragedy — this reporting says there are now dueling national injunctions:
Yes, there are dueling injunctions. There is a 7-day stay on the one in Texas that orders the FDA to withdraw approval of mifepristone nationwide, so there is no immediate impact. The second injunction is from a judge in Washington State; sixteen other states (and Washington, D.C.) signed onto the suit brought by the Washington State Attorney General (he is a gem, by the way) and this one prohibits the FDA from pulling the drug off the market and takes effect immediately. So...those are the two rulings. Who knows how they will play out? As a side bar, just this week the state of Washington acquired 30,000 doses of mifepristone, and the University of Washington has an additional 10,000 doses. The governor did this specifically to have a supply on hand in the event the Texas judge ruled the way he did. There are definitely benefits of living in a blue bubble...