Five Women, Five Stories of Reproductive Freedom

Cat's piece centers on her grandmother Ruth, who had seven live births and repeated miscarriages. Ruth asked her doctor to tie her tubes after her sixth and seventh births and was refused. Cat notes that two years after this period, the Supreme Court recognized married couples' right to contraception. Cat connects the difference between Ruth's life and her own to the availability of contraception and writes that reproductive access enabled the life she has today.

Chelsey: Control after assault and through life decisions

Emma: Queer identity and assisted reproduction

Emma describes birth control as allowing her to avoid pregnancy while she explored identity and opportunities as a queer woman. Later, assisted reproduction (IUI) allowed her and her partner to become parents. For Emma, the combination of contraception and assisted reproductive technology made a family that once felt unattainable into a reality.

Monica: Healthcare access and career trajectory

Monica emphasizes that access to contraception, annual visits and low- or no-cost reproductive health care gave her the ability to decide if and when to have children. She credits that access with enabling her to complete college, attend law school and build a career on her own timetable.

Maria: Gaps in education and using an IUD

Maria grew up in Catholic school where contraception and sexual health weren't discussed. She describes a long and frustrating path to learning about her options and bodily autonomy. Once she accessed contraception—specifically an IUD—she was able to focus on journalism work, graduate school and research in sexual health, and to pass factual information on to others.

• Personal access to contraception and abortion changed the contributors' ability to pursue education, careers and family planning.
• Lack of access affected an earlier generation in ways one contributor maps to repeated pregnancies and denied sterilization.
• Assisted reproductive services can be central to family formation for queer people when contraception earlier enabled other life choices.
• Bedsider and AbortionFinder are named as entry points for finding contraception and abortion care.

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