Faith Leaders Can Support Your Abortion — 3 People Who’ve Been There Explain
By Paige Alexandria
Jan 29, 2020
In Boston, Massachusetts, a few hours before Kol Nidre in September 2017, Tara found out the fetus she was carrying had a life-threatening condition. Although her previous two pregnancies had been met with concerns about growth, she tells Bustle they went on to develop without issue. But at her 28-week scan, the 34-year-old learned this time was different. She knew immediately she’d have to terminate the pregnancy. For traditionally observant Jews like Tara, it’s standard practice to discuss a decision like this with your rabbi beforehand. But because of the date — Kol Nidre is the evening service before Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism — her rabbi was unavailable. “By the time I could talk to her,” Tara says, “I was on a plane to Colorado,” one of the only states where you can get an abortion up to 34 weeks. They couldn’t connect until after she’d landed.