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Speaker Profile

Judith Arcana

Writer, member of Chicago's pre-Roe underground abortion service

Judith Arcana

Virtual Appearance

Judith Arcana writes stories, poems, essays and books. She's a Jane, a member of Chicago's pre-Roe underground abortion service, and her writing includes work rooted in that experience: the fiction collection Hello. This Is Jane; the poetry collection What if your mother is; and the zine Keesha and Joanie and JANE.

Scheduled Appearances

The New Abortion Underground

Crosscut Festival 2023
Fri May 5, 2023 | 9:00am

After the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion access has become increasingly restricted in many states — harkening back to the pre-Roe era, when groups like "the Janes" created an underground network to provide access. We sit down with a former Jane and with a provider working today to consider the future of the fight for abortion access.

WATCH SESSION

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Judith Arcana
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Featuring: Megan Burbank, Judith Arcana, Kelsea McLain

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About the Festival

The Cascade PBS Ideas Festival brings together journalists, newsmakers, and innovators from around the country to talk about the issues that are animating our cultural conversations. The festival includes live recordings of television and podcasts from The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Slate, Pushkin, NPR and PBS; as well as community meetups, meet-and-greets, food trucks, DJs, and more.

The Cascade PBS Ideas Festival will take place May 4, 2024, at the Amazon Meeting Center, 2031 Seventh Ave. Seattle, WA 98121.

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