64,565 “Rape-Related Pregnancies”

Hey Meteor readers,

I am a big Jeopardy girlie, so you just KNOW that last night’s episode, in which the entire first round of categories were Taylor Swift song titles, had me screaming with glee. Those clue writers do not miss (and, for most of those categories, neither did I)!

SCREENSHOT VIA JEOPARDY

In today’s newsletter, we dig into the new, horrifying research about rape survivors and abortion. Plus, Florida is doing weird stuff again, Ohio overrides a gubernatorial veto, and we offer you some weekend reading.

Makin’ the whole place shimmer,

Shannon Melero

WHAT’S GOING ON

No real exceptions: Yesterday, a new research paper published in JAMA Internal Medicine revealed some shocking findings: Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, there have been approximately 64,565 “rape-related pregnancies” in the 14 states with total abortion bans. (Ninety-one percent of those pregnancies took place in states with bans that provided no exceptions for rape.)

Put more plainly: Almost 65,000 pregnant rape survivors were left without a legal option to terminate their pregnancies in their home states. That’s enough people to fill Madison Square Garden three times.

These figures are estimates, but they’re based on data analysis of sexual violence and pregnancy statistics from the CDC and Bureau of Justice Statistics. They also reveal something vitally important: Rape exceptions are not doing what politicians tell us they’re meant to do. The researchers found that “10 or fewer legal abortions” per month total took place in states with bans (including those with so-called rape exceptions), proving that “rape exceptions fail to provide reasonable access to abortion for survivors.”

PHOTO BY MONIQUE MONROE VIA GETTY IMAGES

Why aren’t those rape exceptions working? In practice, many come with strict requirements, most commonly that a survivor must be under a certain number of weeks pregnant and report their rape to the police. But in the U.S., rape and sexual assault are the most under-reported crimes in the country; in 2023, only an estimated 39% of total rapes were reported to the police.

And that’s the problem with many abortion-ban exceptions. They’re not inherently designed to help victims; they’re compromises meant to lend better optics to politicians trying to mask their anti-abortion stances. Some legislators, of course, are perfectly comfortable coming out against rape victims (see: these monsters), but others use exceptions as a political tool, working to rebrand themselves as less extreme, almost reasonable, in a bid to win over moderates.

But these numbers show that exceptions and half-measures are not in the best interest of sexual assault victims. Politicians should either vote in favor of abortion access, or be honest that they’re not bothered by people suffering

AND:

• A Spanish pre-trial inquiry has determined that Luis Rubiales, the former president of Spain’s soccer federation, will face a criminal trial for forcibly kissing Jenni Hermoso during the medal ceremony at the 2023 Women’s World Cup. If found guilty, he could face a minimum of one year in prison.

PLAYERS FROM BARCELONA AND THE U.S. COMING TOGETHER IN SUPPORT OF JENNI HERMOSO, 2023. (PHOTO BY MAURICIO SALAS VIA GETTY IMAGES)

• This week, the Ohio Senate voted to ban gender-affirming care for minors, overriding a previous veto from Governor DeWine, a Republican. The law will also ban trans girls and women from competing on women’s sports teams at the K-12 and collegiate levels.

• Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) is releasing a new safety measure on its platforms that would prevent teens from receiving messages from anyone they aren’t already following. The new feature is intended to make it harder for adults to solicit teens online.

• Florida (which you may know as the state where higher learning goes to die) has decided that students attending public universities can no longer take sociology classes to fulfill their core course requirements. (In other words, sociology is relegated to a fun little elective unless it’s your major.) The decision by the state’s university system is in response to “left-wing activists” supposedly hijacking the field of study and stripping it of “its intended purpose as a general knowledge course.” I guess I now have to come clean and admit that I became a radical mujerista after taking sociology/anthropology in high school. The jig is up, Mr. Henry!

• AI may be polarizing, but there are people out there using it for good—like the AI experts behind the Lakota AI Code Camp. The camp focuses on teaching Lakota students how to code in an effort to “build an Indigenous talent pool, to find and train future experts who can digitally protect and steward Indigenous culture—and keep endangered native languages alive.”

• A new lawsuit filed against former WWE CEO Vince McMahon alleges that he sexually assaulted, trafficked, and tried to silence a former employee by paying out hush money. Also named in the suit is former head of talent relations John Laurinaitis, who most wrestling fans will recognize as Nikki and Brie Garcia’s stepfather.

CLICK THE LINK ABOVE TO GET YOUR UNIQUE SHARE CODE TO SEND TO A FEW FRIENDS. IF FIVE OF THEM SIGN UP FOR THIS NEWSLETTER, YOU GET A METEOR TOTE!

ALREADY HAVE A CODE BUT CAN’T FIND IT? NO WORRIES, IT’S WAITING FOR YOU DOWN BELOW ⬇️

WEEKEND READING 📚

Online: The influencer economy has changed everything about the way we buy. But what does that mean for eco-influencers whose platforms are against the idea of consumption? (Atmos)

On and off the field: Ali Krieger had a jam-packed 2023: retirement, a championship, and an extremely public divorce from fellow soccer star and long-time partner Ashlyn Harris. She’s finally ready to talk about all of it. (Self)

On a crumbling industry: Digital media is once again in freefall, and one of the latest victims of the ever-changing landscape is Pitchfork. (Vulture)

On showing up: Rabbi Sharon Brous reflects on how an ancient religious pilgrimage still applies to how we move in the world today. (The New York Times)

FOLLOW THE METEOR

Thank you for reading The Meteor! Got this from a friend? Subscribe using their share code or sign up for your own copy, sent Tuesdays and Thursdays.

[email protected]