Laura Kaplan, member of the 1970’s clandestine network of abortion providers known as Jane, sits down with Biz! They talk about the lives, the risks, and the work of these outlaws helping women in need. I can only hope that Americans today can harness the courage of Jane’s members and actively work to keep abortion legal and accessible.Need an A? The Janes are at your service. I especially got a kick out of learning that the Jane Collective weren’t the only folks helping pregnant people access abortions: Baptist ministers and other clergy were also actively helping break unjust laws about abortion. Even though their actions weren’t legal, I can’t help but see the Jane Collective’s actions as extraordinarily beneficial and right. Indeed, Kaplan recounts a few examples of Jane members canceling abortions for a few pregnant people who had been coerced into the decision because of parents or partners.

Jane never judged its members respected the people who came to them enough to let them make their own decisions. The women of Jane never asked why someone needed an abortion, although they often heard about the reasons: already had children, money was tight, abusive partners, etc. (All cases were dropped after the Roe decision came down.) Kaplan recounts the process of obtaining an abortion through Jane more than once and so many people were in on the secret that I’m surprised that the Service was only busted by the police once and that they were only busted in 1972. Still others counseled women about birth control and abortion procedures. Others investigated abortion providers to make sure that they were safe. Members of Jane collected money to pay for abortions, travel, and other expenses.

Women often joined because they or someone they knew had needed an abortion and Jane had helped make that happen. The Service helped to connect women with the few safe abortion providers in Chicago or in the Chicago area. I daresay that some people might follow the example of the Jane Collective, as recounted in former member Laura Kaplan’s book The Story of Jane: The Legendary Underground Feminist Abortion Service, to help themselves and others secure safe abortions.īetween 19, dozens of women joined the Abortion Counseling Service of Women’s Liberation, better known as Jane or the Jane Collective, initially founded by Heather Booth. It just means that some pregnant people will have to risk their lives and freedom to hold control over their lives. Banning abortion doesn’t mean that abortion will go away. This isn’t to say that some pregnant people didn’t have to face financial, legal, and logistical challenges in getting an abortion but it was legal in all 50 states.

Until very recently, I lived in a country where I and every other uterus-haver had the right to choose to have an abortion (within certain limits).

The story of jane laura kaplan