How Georgia arrests women who’ve never committed a crime
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Bi-Weekly Sexual Freedom Newsletter
Thursday, November 7, 2024

Top Stories This Week

  • What’s happening at Woodhull;
  • Sex work as election work;
  • How Georgia arrests women who’ve never committed a crime;
  • Attacking mifepristone as constitutional cover for eugenics;
  • Sex workers, street vendors protesting police raids in Queens, NY;
  • Disability rights as technology rights; and
  • Woodhull’s take on Florida’s fetal abnormality exception to its abortion ban.

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A note about the election from our President & CEO:

The battle for sexual freedom has entered a critical new phase. With Trump returning to the White House, our fundamental rights face unprecedented threats. But Woodhull stands ready to meet this challenge head-on. 

For over two decades, Woodhull has been the unwavering voice for sexual freedom and human rights. Now, more than ever, our work is vital. We're not just continuing our mission - we're amplifying it.

In solidarity,

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Fact Checked by Woodhull poster featuring myths and facts

Our Newest Fact Checked is Ready! 

Age verification laws are an increasingly popular way for legislators to regulate what content minors can access online. Although these laws claim to “protect children” from inappropriate sexual content, they actually disproportionately harm them and infringe upon their First Amendment right to free speech and expression. In the latest installment of Fact Checked by Woodhull we tackle the myth that these laws don’t impact our free speech. 

Silenced and Sidelined event poster, Friday Nov 22, 12 PM EST Live on Zoom!

November’s Censorship Program Registration is Live!

On November 22nd, we’re hosting a timely and provocative panel discussion exploring the complex intersection of personal freedom, censorship, and digital privacy in the age of social media.

Our conversation will delve into the controversial topic of professionals facing termination due to their online presence, specifically focusing on cases involving adult content. Panelists will examine such dismissals’ ethical considerations, potential legal ramifications, and societal implications. 

The discussion will address questions of censorship, employer rights, and the blurred lines between public and private life in the digital era. Attendees can expect a thought-provoking dialogue that challenges assumptions and explores the evolving landscape of professional conduct in an increasingly interconnected world.

A graphic of a scratched up American flag with a kissing lips imprint on top

(Rohan Zhou-Lee)

Sex Work Is Election Work — An Issue Michigan Advocates Say Is Lacking in the 2024 Campaign Cycle (Pride Source) 

The 2024 election may now be over, but the issue remains: sex work was conspicuously absent from the campaign cycle. Pride Source writes: “From facilitating voter registration to engaging politics via content creation, the sex worker industry, which generates upwards of $5 billion a year, has had a major influence on U.S. constituents. Regardless of that influence — and how in-demand sex work is — sex workers consistently find themselves shut out of policymaking and bombarded by archaic policy on federal, state and local levels, especially in Michigan. Yet, despite being bullied and excluded during such turbulent political times, sex workers continue to advocate not just for their rights but also the rights of others through voter empowerment.” Read more.

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Photo of corrections officers in a line, a close-up of their left sleeve featuring the Georgia Corrections logo

(Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images)

How Georgia Arrests Women Who Never Committed Crimes (Capital B Atlanta) 

Georgia law allows prosecutors to charge people in relation to crimes committed by other people. Under this law, many women endure this unthinkable punishment. Carla Simmons writes: “After informally surveying 150 women in my facility this summer, I found 38% of the women were charged as a ‘party to’ the crime and convicted of a violent felony. Of that number, 15% were sentenced to life without parole, 55% were sentenced to life or life plus, and 10% received more than 20 years. In other words, more than one-third of the women imprisoned alongside me are here because they were near other people who committed crimes — often men or abusive partners.” Read more.

 

A box of Mifepristone floating against a white backdrop

(Robin Marty/Austen Risolvato/Rewire News Group illustration)

Conservatives’ Latest Attack on Mifepristone Is a Constitutional Cover for Eugenics (Rewire News Group) 

In three states, conservative attorneys general are making a new, disturbing argument: falling teen birth rates is a harm courts must remedy by banning abortion pills. Jessica Mason Pieklo writes: “For the first time ever, the conservative legal movement is explicitly claiming the state has a right to your future pregnancies—because without them, their political power will be reduced. These ‘population interests,’ as articulated by the attorneys general, target pregnant teens, but there’s nothing in the states’ argument that would limit its reach to minors only. Nor is there anything about these arguments that would be limited to policing abortion. If a state truly has a constitutional interest in future pregnancies, it could arguably enact a whole host of policies that don’t just prioritize birth, but mandate it.” Read more.

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Activists gathered on the steps of Corona Plaza Tuesday to call for the removal of police officers and State Troopers from their neighborhoods.

(Spectrum News NY1/Rebecca Greenberg)

Sex workers, street vendors protest police raids in Queens (Spectrum News NY1) 

Police and State Troopers are descending upon the Queens, NY, community to target sex workers – predominantly immigrants, trans people, and working people of color. Rebecca Greenberg writes: “Rights, not raids. That’s what sex workers and street vendors in Queens are demanding, following an increased crackdown on illegal brothels and unlicensed vendors along Roosevelt Avenue. [...] Authorities say they are responding to neighborhood complaints that sex work makes the area seedy and unsafe, and unlicensed street vendors infringe on public space and make it hard for brick-and-mortar businesses to thrive.
[...] But sex workers like Victoria Von Blaque say the crackdown is not only unfair, but unjust.” Read more.

Original Electronic Frontier graphic artwork - a disabled figure is using a large wrench to maneuver its wheelchair wheel

(Electronic Frontier Foundation)

Woodhull’s Take: Honoring Amber Nicole Thurman (Woodhull’s Sex & Politics Blog) 

Amber Nicole Thurman should be alive right now. We at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation reflect on her death: “[In] 2022, due to Georgia’s extreme six-week abortion ban, Amber Nicole Thurman, a 28-year-old Black woman, mother, daughter, sister, friend, and human being, died. Amber took abortion pills and encountered a rare complication, causing her to go to a Georgia hospital. But under Georgia’s ban, the hospital could not do what it’s supposed to do: save lives. [...] Amber should be alive right now. We at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation are profoundly saddened and outraged by Amber’s death. We join the scores of advocates agitating for reproductive justice and sexual freedom, working to ensure that we all have access to abortion care.” Read more.

Graphic of a fetus and a ballot box with a hand dropping in a ballot, all in a blue hue with an American flag in the background

(Wildpixel)

Woodhull’s Take: The False Promise of Florida’s Fatal Fetal Anomaly Abortion Ban “Exception”  (Woodhull’s Sex & Politics Blog) 

We at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation share our take on Florida’s fatal fetal anomaly abortion ban “exception”: “Florida limits abortions after six weeks, with a notable exception: pregnancies with fetal anomalies that could prove fatal to the fetus. But in the draconian state of abortion access, it comes as no surprise that this exception brings little to no relief. In practice, securing an abortion under Florida’s exception is nearly impossible.” Read more.

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