Living and Dying Under Dobbs, vol. 3 (no audio). Scroll down to read the stories.

Volume 3 of the ongoing textile book.

Scroll down to read the stories.

In 2022 in Texas, at 18 weeks of pregnancy, Amanda Zurawski’s water broke. Doctors told her the fetus would not survive, but because it still had a heartbeat and Amanda was not yet in severe danger, they would not treat her miscarriage. When she developed acute sepsis a few days later, the hospital delivered the fetus, but Amanda went into septic shock and spent three days in intensive care, where she nearly died. Because she did not receive timely care, Amanda lost one of her fallopian tubes, reducing the likelihood of a future pregnancy. Amanda and four other women sued the state of Texas in a lawsuit that grew to include 20 women and two doctors. In May 2024 the Texas Supreme Court upheld the abortion ban. The decision felt like “a slap in the face,” Amanda said. “It felt like they were trying to take away our voices, erase us from history, and silence us.”

In 2023, Kate Cox’s fetus was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, a genetic disorder that causes severe developmental problems. She and her husband were told the baby was likely to die before or at birth, and that the best case scenario was that it would be born, placed on hospice, and live for a week. Because her life was also endangered, Kate sued Texas for an exception to the state ban. Unsuccessful, she had an abortion in New Mexico, after naming the fetus Chloe. Kate also gave Chloe her grandfather’s name as her middle name, so she could look for him in heaven. Kate describes the decision to terminate her pregnancy as “really painful . . . because we wanted our baby so badly. But we didn’t want her to suffer and the risks to me were too high. I also have two other babies and they need their mommy. So I had to make a decision with all of my babies in mind.”

Minnesota state flag with Melissa Hortman's initials above and date of PRO Act below, all stitched on a fragment of vintage handkerchief

On June 14, 2025, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman was assassinated, along with her husband, by a Trump supporter and Christian nationalist who had a hit list of Democratic politicians, abortion providers, and reproductive rights advocates. Under Hortman’s leadership as the speaker of the House of Representatives, the legislature passed the PRO Act on January 19, 2023, enshrining protections for reproductive rights. Six months before Hortman was assassinated, Trump pardoned 23 people convicted of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. The FACE Act was passed in 1994 to protect reproductive healthcare clinics from violence by anti-abortion extremists. Since 1993, at least 11 people have been killed in abortion clinic attacks. As of June 2025, Republicans in Congress were working to repeal the FACE Act.

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Jeans stained with blood in crotch, stitched onto African Ankara fabric

Two weeks after Louisiana enacted its abortion ban in August 2022, Kaitlyn Joshua, 30, and her husband Landon were delighted to learn she was pregnant with their second child. At 10-11 weeks of pregnancy, Kaitlyn began bleeding heavily. At Woman’s Hospital, she was told that the fetus had stopped growing, its heartbeat was faint, and her pregnancy hormones were low, but staff would not confirm a miscarriage. The next day, she was expelling tissue and in severe pain, so Kaitlyn went to Baton Rouge General. By the time she arrived, her jeans were soaked in blood. A doctor said an ultrasound suggested she might have a cyst and asked if she was sure she was pregnant. Staff noted in her hospital records that she seemed to be having a miscarriage but sent her home without treatment where, weeks later, the miscarriage completed. Kaitlyn and Logan have decided it’s not safe in Louisiana to try for a second child now. She says she wonders “if white women get turned away like this.”

Umbrella with rain represented by red beads

In 2025, at 12 weeks of pregnancy, Holland and her husband Jake learned that their fetus tested positive for the genetic disorders Turner Syndrome and Trisomy 13. Babies born with the latter typically have many developmental disabilities, including breathing and feeding problems, and only 10-20% survive for a year. Because of Florida’s abortion ban, Holland’s obstetrician implied that a miscarriage during her pregnancy was the best outcome. He told Holland that if she began to bleed, she should “let it rain.”

Parking lot sign represented by white P and arrow stitched on navy, flowered fabric

In 2023, Jaci Statton was diagnosed with a partial molar pregnancy, in which a nonviable embryo develops with a tumor that can endanger the mother’s life. Two Oklahoma hospitals refused to terminate the pregnancy because a heartbeat was still detected. Oklahoma Children’s Hospital suggested she wait in the parking lot until her life was sufficiently endangered for them to perform an abortion. Hospital staff told her to wait until she “crashed” or until her blood pressure was so high she was “about to have a heart attack.” Jaci and her family drove to Kansas, despite the risk of hemorrhage, where she was able to get an abortion. Later, Jaci had a tubal ligation to prevent further pregnancies and filed a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services. In early 2024, DHHS denied that the hospital had violated the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA). “Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention,” the letter stated.