美国国家公共电台 NPR--'Throughline': The history of abortion after 1973

'Throughline': The history of abortion² after 1973

Transcript³

NPR's history podcast Throughline explores how opponents of abortion rights banded together, built power and launched one of the most successful grassroots campaigns of the past century.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The Supreme⁴ Court's 1973 decision in Roe⁵ v. Wade⁶ transformed the abortion rights landscape overnight. The people who opposed those rights were deeply shaken and newly motivated. In the years since Roe, they began advocating their cause more broadly to bring more people into the movement and gain political power. Today, Rund Abdelfatah and Ramtin Arablouei at NPR's history podcast Throughline take us back to that time to help us understand how what happened then paved the way for the recent Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe.

BERNARD ROSENFELD: My name's Bernhard Rosenfeld. I'm a board certified⁷ OB-GYN doctor. I'm an abortion provider.

RUND ABDELFATAH, BYLINE⁸: And you're talking to us from Texas.

ROSENFELD: Houston.

ABDELFATAH: Houston. How long have you lived in Houston?

ROSENFELD: Now 40 years.

ABDELFATAH: So 40 years ago would have been in, I guess, the early '80s.

ROSENFELD: 1980.

ABDELFATAH: In 1980, Ronald Reagan was elected president.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

JOHN CHANCELLOR⁹: We have projected Ronald Reagan the winner.

ABDELFATAH: It was a victory for opponents of abortion rights. As a candidate, Reagan had made opposition¹⁰ to abortion rights an important part of his campaign, even though he supported laws to expand abortion rights while governor of California.

RAMTIN ARABLOUEI, BYLINE: So when he won the presidency¹¹, it signaled the beginning of a new era for the movement.

ABDELFATAH: And for Dr. Rosenfeld, who had carried out abortions¹² in Michigan, Maryland and even Reagan's home state, California, before landing in Texas, something seemed to be changing on the ground.

ROSENFELD: The anti-abortion groups started picketing¹³ the clinics and then even started picketing my home. So it really exploded.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Hey, ma'am, can I give you some information? Young lady, whatever your circumstances are, would you just be willing to come talk with us?

ABDELFATAH: They called themselves sidewalk counselors¹⁴ and stood outside clinics to intervene before a woman had an abortion.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: There have probably been lots of voices urging you to abort¹ your child. But we're here to talk with you about whatever the situation is that makes you feel that's necessary.

JENNIFER HOLLAND: They coordinate¹⁵ between all the anti-abortion groups in the city so that someone always takes a day, and so someone is protesting all the time.

ARABLOUEI: Jennifer Holland is the author of the book "Tiny You: A Western History Of The Anti-Abortion Movement." She says the movement was adopting a strategy in the early 1980s that placed women alongside the fetus¹⁶ as victims and abortion providers as the ones with blood on their hands.

HOLLAND: Reagan passed his laws, giving more room to activists¹⁷, especially in schools.

ABDELFATAH: But by the mid-1980s...

HOLLAND: Roe has been sort of the law of the land for a decade or more.

KARISSA HAUGEBERG: So if you were anti-abortion in 1986, you would wonder, like, you know, I've done everything. I've gone through the - you know, the traditional levers.

ABDELFATAH: This is Karissa Haugeberg, author of "Women Against Abortion: Inside The Largest Moral Reform Movement Of The 20th Century."

HAUGEBERG: I voted for an anti-abortion president, maybe anti-abortion senators, and nothing has changed.

HOLLAND: This is the moment when a certain segment embraces what they call the rescue movement.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED NEWSCASTER #1: Earlier this month, hundreds affiliated¹⁸ with a group called Operation Rescue staged anti-abortion demonstrations²⁰ in New York City.

ARABLOUEI: Carole Joffe, author of "Obstacle Course: The Everyday Struggle to Get an Abortion in America," says...

CAROLE JOFFE: Their mission was to end abortion.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RANDALL TERRY: The judges, the politicians, they're getting the signal, as is Planned Parenthood, NOW, ACLU, etc. Legalized child-killing's days are numbered. We will win.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED NEWSCASTER #2: This CBN News exclusive footage shows a clinic worker arriving just before 7 a.m. to open the doors. She is met by the sight of protesters blocking those doors. The confrontation²¹ you are seeing resulted...

HOLLAND: You know, constant harassing²² phone calls, glue in locks, sometimes actually going in and chaining themselves to equipment.

PHIL LEAHY: We would sit down and it was, you know, the sit-in movement in the in the '60s with - it was the civil rights movement, and it was more or less the same thing.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Help us, oh, God.

ROSENFELD: They destroyed property. They put garden hoses on our roof and wrecked²³ the roofs.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Help us, Jesus.

ROSENFELD: You know, had chemicals that they threw.

LEAHY: And then there would be arrests, and we'd just spend time in jail.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED NEWSCASTER #3: Police did arrest 275 protesters at this demonstration¹⁹. Six hundred ninety more were arrested at...

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Reform our country, God, before it's too late. Amen.

JOFFE: The first abortion doctor was killed in Pensacola, Fla., in March '93.

HAUGEBERG: So one thing that I think a lot of people don't understand is that there has been an undercurrent of violence to the anti-abortion movement since it began. So even in the 1960s, I found evidence of people sending hate mail, wishing people who were publicly identified as pro-choice or having had an abortion - sending the messages saying, like, you're going to hell; I hope you die, that sort of thing.

HOLLAND: But, you know, once it escalates²⁴ to kidnapping and murder, that really did pose a real problem for the mainstream²⁵ movement.

DANEEN DOLCIE: They picture me with six guns on my hips²⁶ and bombs in my hand, you know? That's just not us. But that's what they want to see.

HOLLAND: They had to imagine these people as, you know, what I think the media calls, like, lone²⁷ wolves - mentally unstable²⁸ people and people who were marginal, not sort of a real part of the movement.

DOLCIE: But there will always be those people.

ABDELFATAH: In 1994, Congress overwhelmingly approved the Freedom of Access to Abortion Clinic Entrances Act, which made it a federal crime to use physical force, threaten or obstruct²⁹ someone from getting an abortion. That didn't mean protesters couldn't stand outside of clinics. But there were now more barriers against the worst kind of violence and vandalism. Despite that, violence would continue to plague clinics over the coming decades.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

ARABLOUEI: And it put the abortion issue front and center in the national conversation. With the violent wing of the movement facing more scrutiny³⁰, mainstream activists doubled down on their political ambitions, working within the system to make ending abortion and getting rid of Roe a central issue for the Republican Party.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

FADEL: Those were Throughline hosts Ramtin Arablouei and Rund Abdelfatah. You can hear the whole episode on the podcast Throughline.

1 abort   

v.使流产，堕胎；中止；中止(工作、计划等)

参考例句：

• The captain instructed them to abort the mission.上尉指示他们中止执行任务。
• With this button the user can abort the audio sequence.用户可以用该按钮终止音频序列。

2 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

5 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

6 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

7 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。

8 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

9 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

12 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

13 picketing   

[经] 罢工工人劝阻工人上班，工人纠察线

参考例句：

• mass picketing of the factory 罢工工人集体对工厂的封锁
• "And my chaps were also there to prevent picketing! “我的人也是防着女工们要拦厂！ 来自子夜部分

14 counselors   

n.顾问( counselor的名词复数 )；律师；（使馆等的）参赞；（协助学生解决问题的）指导老师

参考例句：

• Counselors began an inquiry into industrial needs. 顾问们开始调查工业方面的需要。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We have experienced counselors available day and night. ) 这里有经验的法律顾问全天候值班。） 来自超越目标英语 第4册

15 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

16 fetus   

n.胎，胎儿

参考例句：

• In the fetus,blood cells are formed in different sites at different ages.胎儿的血细胞在不同时期生成在不同的部位。
• No one knows why a fetus is not automatically rejected by the mother's immune system. 没有人知道为什么母亲的免疫系统不会自动排斥胎儿。

17 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 affiliated   

adj. 附属的, 有关连的

参考例句：

• The hospital is affiliated with the local university. 这家医院附属于当地大学。
• All affiliated members can vote. 所有隶属成员都有投票权。

19 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

20 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

21 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

22 harassing   

v.侵扰，骚扰( harass的现在分词 )；不断攻击（敌人）

参考例句：

• The court ordered him to stop harassing his ex-wife. 法庭命令他不得再骚扰前妻。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was too close to be merely harassing fire. 打得这么近，不能完全是扰乱射击。 来自辞典例句

23 wrecked   

adj.失事的，遇难的

参考例句：

• the hulk of a wrecked ship 遇难轮船的残骸
• the salvage of the wrecked tanker 对失事油轮的打捞

24 escalates   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的第三人称单数 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• As the challenge escalates, the need for teamwork elevates. 面临的挑战越大，越需要团队协同合作。 来自互联网
• I cannot understand why a minor disagreement escalates into a fist-fight. 我真不明白为什么一点意见不合就变成了拳头相见。 来自互联网

25 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

26 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

28 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

29 obstruct   

v.阻隔，阻塞(道路、通道等)；n.阻碍物，障碍物

参考例句：

• He became still more dissatisfied with it and secretly did everything in his power to obstruct it.他对此更不满意，尽在暗里使绊子。
• The fallen trees obstruct the road.倒下的树将路堵住了。

30 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。