USA – Murder, Pardons and Impunity: How Antiabortion Violence Escalated Under Trump

9/16/2025
by Jodi Enda, Ms. Magazine

Her friend lay dead, shot at home by an assassin who had killed two people and wounded two more. The suspect had vanished, leaving behind his fake police car and notebooks listing several dozen potential targets who bore at least one commonality: their support of abortion rights.

One of the names scribbled on the list was her own. Threats weren’t new to Ruth Richardson. She had received them when she introduced her first bill—on gun safety—in the Minnesota House of Representatives. She had received them in her current job as CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States. This threat, though, was different. Her friend Melissa Hortman was dead.

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2025/09/16/anti-abortion-violence-trump-melissa-hortman/

USA – Amid Rise in Anti-Abortion Activism, Clinic Protections Are More Needed Than Ever

How abortion clinic staff and volunteers are working to protect patients as the anti-abortion movement mobilizes against providers.

by Eleanor J. Bader
July 23, 2025

Fifteen years ago, when Eileen learned that anti-abortion protesters were jeering at people entering Equality Health Center in Concord, New Hampshire, she decided to take action to ensure patients’ security in her city.

Eileen, who asked that her last name be withheld to protect her privacy, has been a clinic escort ever since, walking patients into the building, listening to their stories, and doing what she can to distract them from anti-choice taunts. “I can’t abide injustice or inequality,” she tells The Progressive. “Escorting is highly emotional work, but I feel privileged to be able to help. As escorts, we put our bodies on the line and make a real difference.”

Continued: https://progressive.org/latest/anti-abortion-activism-clinic-protections/

23.07.2025

Commentary

Alliance Defending Freedom

anti-choice cruelty

anti-choice harassment

anti-choice hatred

anti-choice intimidation

anti-choice misogyny

anti-choice protesters

anti-choice terrorism

anti-choice violence

Center for Medical Progress

Choices Women’s Medical Center

clinic escorts

crisis pregnancy centers

duVergne Gaines

Eleanor Bader

FACE Act

Feminist Majority Foundation

Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act

National Abortion Federation

National Clinic Access Project

Progressive Anti-Abortion uprising

The Minnesota Shooting Wasn’t Random—It Was a Predictable Resurgence of Violence

Abortion providers and pro-abortion lawmakers have long been under threat. It’s time we act like it .

July 9, 2025
by Tiffany L. Green and Jamie Morgan

Minnesota experienced an act of devastating political violence last month: Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, were killed in their home. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette are recovering from life-saving surgeries after shielding their adult daughter from the gunman.

While we do not yet understand the full extent of the gunman’s motives, it is undeniable that protesting abortion and intimidating people who support access to it was one of them. Authorities report the suspect carried a list of over 70 targets, including elected officials who support abortion rights, abortion providers and pro-choice advocates.

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2025/07/09/minnesota-shooting-hortman-anti-abortion-violence-doctors-providers/

This Student-Led Initiative Sends Letters of Support to Abortion Patients and Providers

6/18/2025
by Ava Slocum, Ms. Magazine

We’re in the midst of an incredible surge in antiabortion extremism and clinic violence, with this weekend’s tragic shooting of pro-abortion Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband providing a grim example of the threats facing abortion advocates. Meanwhile, in the wake of state-level attacks on abortion rights, it’s hard to ignore the mental health implications for abortion patients and providers alike.

… Most news coverage of abortion rights in the United States focuses on the legal battles, and this coverage is extremely important. But the initiative Write and Rights—started last year by college student Iha Rastogi—is working to boost the mental health of abortion patients and providers in the midst of these attacks on their rights by organizing her fellow students to write and send supportive letters to clinics.

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2025/06/18/students-send-letters-support-abortion-patients-providers/

18.06.2025

Commentary

FACE Act

Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act

Deadly shootings in Minnesota have shaken abortion providers

The suspected shooter had a list of targets that included abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood affiliates and employees.

By Shefali Luthra, Grace Panetta
June 18, 2025

Abortion providers have long grappled with threats of political violence, but Saturday’s shootings targeting Minnesota lawmakers have put them on high alert, and many say they feel newly vulnerable.

Suspected shooter Vance Boelter had a list of targets that included other elected officials and abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood affiliates and employees, multiple outlets reported. Boelter had also previously spoken out against abortion, per multiple statements surfaced by news outlets.

Continued: https://19thnews.org/2025/06/minnesota-shootings-abortion-clinics/