If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade in the coming weeks, as a leaked draft of the majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization suggests it will, the decision will thrust the country into legal terrain that has largely remained uncharted for the past half century. As many as 32 states are likely to ban or severely restrict abortions. But the laws won't change the fact that many residents in those states will still want or need abortions. Absent the long-held constitutional right to exercise control over their own bodies, to what lengths will people go to secure access to reproductive care, and who will help them?
To get a sense of what the post-Roe era might look like, one place we can look to is Myanmar. I have been reporting on the country since a coup overthrew the nation's government last year, and I have spoken to activists and anti-coup rebels about the role reproductive rights play in the struggle for democracy there.
