Fighting Mad is a book about what “reproductive justice” means and what it looks like to fight for it. Editors Krystale E. Littlejohn and Rickie Solinger bring together many of the strongest, most resistant voices in the country to describe the impacts of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision on abortion access and care.
Krystale E. Littlejohn is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Oregon and author of Just Get on the Pill: The Uneven Burden of Reproductive Politics. She is a series editor of the Reproductive Justice book series from University of California Press.
Rickie Solinger is a historian, curator, and author or editor of many books about reproductive politics, including, with Loretta Ross, Reproductive Justice: An Introduction. She is the senior editor of the Reproductive Justice book series from University of California Press.
Fighting Mad is a call for action in the face of the Dobbs decision. You’ve collected the voices of exemplary leaders and fighters across the social, religious, legal, and healthcare spectrum. Who are some of the contributors and what are some examples of their resistance and resilience?
The essays in Fighting Mad demonstrate the devastating ripple effects of the Dobbs decision and the enduring spirit of those committed to fighting for what’s right. The activities and experiences of the contributors show how even in the face of vast reproductive tyranny, there are people advocating for their communities, patients, and constituents to get abortion care to those who need it.
Clinic leaders strategized about how to provide services that allowed them to remain agile and quickly respond to new legislation. Some non-profit leaders launched innovative information campaigns to ensure that people learned about the ways that they could access abortion while others grew and promoted funds to provide legal recourse for those facing prosecution. Nurses and doctors banded together to hold each other accountable in supporting patients, not police, in the fight against criminalization as the state turned to providers to enforce reproductive oppression. And, reproductive justice activists—as always—worked to anticipate future attacks against reproductive autonomy and strategized to meet those attacks head-on.
The contributors’ work demonstrates that while anti-abortion forces have fought hard to curtail reproductive freedom, there have always been those fighting even harder to achieve reproductive liberation.
The Dobbs decision has significant implications for abortion access, health equity, and care. In what ways does Fighting Mad explore the potential consequences of this decision on marginalized and vulnerable communities?
Dobbs has been incredibly destructive for marginalized and vulnerable populations. Essayists show how the decision deepened fundamental challenges with access to abortion that existed before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
We start Fighting Mad by centering reproductive justice as central not only for the right to abortion, but also for the right to live self-determined lives for marginalized people. The essayists underscore the need to expand our thinking beyond abortion to protect autonomy for disabled people. They interrogate policies that prevent incarcerated people from getting the abortion care that they need. They clarify the inseparability of queer liberation and reproductive liberation. And, they draw attention to the many populations that need, have, and fight for the right to abortion—Indigenous people, Black, Brown, and Asian people, young people, disabled people, poor people, undocumented people, people from rural areas, people on college campuses, and the list goes on.
Fighting Mad powerfully shows that diverse strategies and multidimensional thinking are required to address the multiple axes of oppression that undermine people’s right to reproductive justice in the fight for abortion and reproductive self-determination.
What are some of the practical strategies or recommendations Fighting Mad provides for readers engaging with reproductive justice issues on both local and national levels?
Fighting Mad demonstrates clearly that there are many ways to be involved in the fight. From small actions to large, there is no excuse for inaction if there is a desire to act. People can make sure that they learn about abortion to help inform others and correct misinformation. They can volunteer with local reproductive justice organizations. They can donate to abortion funds. They can vote, even recognizing the limits of courts and the continued attacks on voting rights. They can add a statement to their syllabus. They can write to local leaders. They can have conversations with their friends and family.
There’s so much more to say. The essayists and change agents in Fighting Mad guide the way on these and many other actions that can contribute to making the progress required to achieve reproductive liberation for all.
How have your own personal experiences informed your work? What brought you together to pull this collection of powerful voices into a single volume?
We’re both intersectional feminist scholars who understand the role of race and reproduction in constructing and violently withholding privileges in the U.S. (and elsewhere). We care deeply about injustice, and we felt obliged to respond to Dobbs. Indeed, we immediately got on the phone to envision Fighting Mad before the Dobbs decision even came down because we knew what lay on the horizon. We knew, most importantly, that we had a job to do in response. While we come from such different places—in terms of age, geography, and race—we loved that we did so. We loved that we speak different languages and also the same language. We loved that we differed as historians and sociologists. We loved that we saw things eye-to-eye and also very uniquely. It made for a phenomenal relationship as co-editors, thought partners, and friends, and we’re honored that Fighting Mad is the result.
